recipe: gingerbread cake

Sunday afternoon, Mike, Jen and Jamie came over for an early Christmas brunch. For the past few years, we've gotten together before Christmas to celebrate the holiday and trade gifts, and I really look forward to it.

And this year we got some live music, provided by the guitar-wielding Jamie.

And here I put this blog post on pause to talk to you about that mirror above my couch.

Since Tony and I moved into our house, I've been stumped about what to hang over the couch. For a long time, the wall was empty. Then I painted a huge painting of birds on a wire, but I got tired of it. Then I put together a gallery wall, but it was too chaotic for me. And then I found this antique mirror at an antique mall in Ohio this fall for $22! (The same store where I scored my fancy elephant.) It was painted pink to be shabby chic, so I just needed a jar of gold paint. (I used the same paint for my gold eagle over the mantel.) The mirror is heavy, so I bought mirror-hanging hardware from Home Depot with a self-drilling screw to ensure the bracket doesn't pull away from the drywall. And the verdict is: I love my mirror. It's just the right size for the wall space, and it gives the room another dimension and really does make it feel bigger.

Oh, and here is a random mirror-cleaning tip from my mom. You've seen old mirrors with black smudges on them. Apparently that's from moisture getting behind the frame. So when you clean your mirrors, squirt the Windex directly onto your rag and not onto the mirror, so extra moisture doesn't get back there. The More You Know.

Anyway, back to gingerbread cake. I served gingerbread cake for dessert Sunday. If you're still undecided about a dessert to serve for Christmas, let me suggest gingerbread cake with whipped cream. It's seasonally appropriate and delicious. It tastes like Christmas.

Behold, this beautiful cake (with the aftermath of wrapping paper in the background).

The nice folks of America's Test Kitchen did it again. The ingredients seem weird (stout beer, pepper), but it all works together.

Gingerbread Cake

Via America's Test Kitchen

• 3/4 cup stout beer
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2/3 cup molasses
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
• whipped cream for serving

In a small saucepan, bring stout to a boil. (Beer from your home state is optional.)

Remove from heat and stir in baking soda. When foaming subsides, stir in molasses, brown sugar and sugar.

In a stand mixer bowl, combine flour, ground ginger, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and pepper.

Transfer stout mixture to a large bowl. Whisk in eggs, oil and fresh ginger.

Whisk wet mixture into flour mixture in thirds, mixing until completely smooth after each addition.

Grease and flour a pan. The recipe calls for an 8-inch square pan. I didn't have that, so I used a 9-inch round pan, which I figured had the same area as the square pan. (Area of square pan: 8 x 8 = 64. Area of round pan: 3.14 x 4.5 x 4.5 = 63.6. Thank you, Math.)

Transfer batter to prepared pan. Tap against the counter a few times.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. (Original recipe said 35 to 45 minutes.) Don't open the oven door during baking. Cake will be done when toothpick comes out clean.

Serve with whipped cream.

life: halloween candy & halloween puppy

As I type this, Tony is outside cleaning the gutters. He's also raking up leaves, so they don't crowd the drain and flood the backyard. The wind is starting to pick up. It's getting chilly. The hurricane is on its way.

And we are now fully stocked with Halloween candy. Always be prepared. I couldn't remember how many pieces we gave out last year, but it was in the hundreds. I got 280 this year. Hopefully I estimated correctly.

And speaking of Halloween, Tony, Jamie and I stopped by Camille and Matt's house this afternoon to meet their new, 12-week-old puppy, Ducky. Who is going as a distinguished gentleman for Halloween. How cute is this guy.

I tried to convince Tony that Victor should get a Halloween costume when we were at Target getting the candy. He said no. He doesn't believe in dressing up animals. I, however, think it's adorable if the animal's into it. And Ducky clearly is into it.

things to do: union market

Last Saturday afternoon, Tony, Jamie and I finally checked out the new Union Market in Northeast. It's a large warehouse near Gallaudet University, and the vendors sell everything from fresh vegetables to oysters to pickles to cheese.

We grabbed dinner at the market. Jamie and I got some food at TaKorean, which sells Korean BBQ tacos. TaKorean has a food truck around D.C. and now also has this stand in Union Market.

Tony ordered some oysters from Rappahannock Oyster Co. And he ordered a beer. At least on a Saturday evening, the oyster place seemed to be the place to be because it was the only vendor serving beer.

The vendors we talked to said more vendors will be opening soon on both the first and second floors. Right now, Union Market is kind of limited. And it's not in the most convenient location. (Florida Avenue is the closest Metro stop, but we drove.) But I'm really rooting for it. The building is industrially beautiful. And I hope the new vendors bring more variety (and more beer options) to make it a destination spot.

<3

After dinner, the three of us spent the rest of the evening on U Street, at two bars I hadn't been to before but which I like very much now. First, we had some cocktails on the rooftop bar at Braxton at Ninth and U streets. Great rooftop bar on a mild evening. Then we walked down the street to American Ice at Ninth and V streets, where we grabbed a picnic table on the front patio and had some more drinks. Tony and Jamie ordered some swachos (swine + nachos), which wasn't my thing, but the two of them seemed to enjoy it plenty.

dining out: sticky rice

On Saturday evening, after our brewery tour, Tony, Jamie and I wandered down to H Street looking for dinner. Our first stop was Toki Underground, where the host said the wait would be 2 hours and 20 minutes. No thanks. (Seriously, I would be happy to spend money there at some point if the wait was ever reasonable or if they took weekend reservations.) Anyway, the three of us kept walking down H Street and wandered into Sticky Rice, where I was pleasantly surprised to hear there was no wait.

We ordered a bucket of tater tots as an appetizer. Of course. Because how can you go to Sticky Rice and not order a bucket of tots? And I ate them with chopsticks. Of course I did. How do you eat your tater tots? 

My meal was fabulous. I was in the mood for lots and lots of vegetables, and the veggie tofu medley hit the spot.

That said, neither Tony nor Jamie finished their meals. Tony had the dirty vegan, which he said was "too coconut-y," and Jamie had the mock chicken szechuan (with real chicken), which he said was "too hot." Whatever -- mine was delicious! Many many stars for Sticky Rice. Extra stars for not having a wait.

things to do: dc brau brewery tour

Tony, Jamie, and I piled in the car Saturday afternoon and drove to the DC Brau brewery. We heard it has free tastings and tours on Saturdays from 1-4 p.m., and we wanted to check it out.

The brewery is way, way out in the Northeast part of the city, in a neighborhood you would never normally venture to. It's in an industrial area on Bladensburg Road, in an alley behind a post office.

But once we got inside, it felt like we just walked into a party at the house of a friend of a friend. The three of us got samples of each of the four beers on tap and drank them while sitting on folding chairs on the loading dock. And all of the beers were fantastic. My favorite was the Belgian beer, called the Citizen.

It's not a huge operation, and we got a tour from the CEO himself, whose shirt made me smile:

He told us about all the ways DC Brau is expanding to keep up with demand. After the tour, I found myself invested in the brewery's success as a small business, rooting for it to succeed. DC Brau has a new fan.

Here's the canning machine, which reminded me of something that Lucille Ball would've had fun with.

And look at all of these cans, just waiting to be filled with delicious beer.

I came home with a couple six-packs. (They also fill growlers on Saturday afternoons.) And I'm adding the brewery to my list of places visitors might like to see when they're in D.C.

reading list: the sun also rises

A few years ago, I launched a Personal Betterment Initiative in which I decided to read classic novels that I've just never got around to reading. I wanted to become a better-read person. And I started with The Catcher in the Rye because I somehow earned a high school diploma and two college degrees without ever reading it.

Some of the books I've read over the past few years have really stuck with me. Like The Grapes of Wrath. After I read it, I was afraid that it had ruined all novels for me. I couldn't read another book for six months because I was convinced that no novel could ever match its power. Others, eh. Like Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger. Too many ... words ... that were uninteresting.

I've just finished reading The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway. I should acknowledge that I became smitten with the Hemingway character in the film Midnight in Paris, which is why a Hemingway book got moved to the top of my reading list.

But ... I didn't love it. I realize this may not be a popular statement. When I told Jamie and Mike that I wasn't getting into the book, they looked as if I just told them I didn't like their haircuts. But the plot really didn't keep my attention, I despised all of the characters, and I found none of the themes to be relatable. Yet I keep thinking about the book, even after finishing it, so something about it is speaking to some part of me.

The novel is about a group of friends who live a fancy life in Paris in the 1920s, then spend some time fishing in Spain, and then party at the fiestas and bullfights in Pamplona. Actually, I think "friends" is too nice of a word because the characters don't seem to actually like one other. The main character, Jake, was injured during World War I and became impotent, which is why he can't be with the woman he's in love with, Brett. But it seems as if Brett has sex with all of the other male characters in their circle, which makes all of their relationships really complicated and uncomfortable. And the characters spend most of their time drinking to excess and traveling around Europe in buses and trains.

And that all does sound fairly interesting, but I just couldn't get into it. These characters are at a point in their lives where they have not found their true love, their happily ever after. They wander around Europe and drink too much, and none of that seems redeeming. They are insufferable. I feel sad for them. It seems as if Hemingway was drawing from his own experiences when he wrote the book, and that just made me kind of sad for Hemingway.

All this to say: Maybe this book would have appealed to me at a different point in my life. The life experiences you bring to a book color your interpretations of it. Perhaps the relationship themes would've appealed to the 18-year-old Jessi. Or the expat wanderings would've appealed to the 24-year-old Jessi. But 29-year-old Jessi...? As I type this, I'm laying next to my sleeping husband, the man I've been with for almost 10 (!) years. I'm inside the house we bought together, the place where we put down roots. And I'm giving myself 15 more minutes to finish this blog post because I have to get up for work in the morning like a responsible adult. And life is good. I wouldn't trade wanderlust for what I've got for anything. So maybe that's why I keep thinking about the book: It's made me pause to be thankful for what I've got.

decor: white bed linens

I'm in love with all-white beds. To me, they are classic and romantic. Clean and soft. A restful place where you want to lay down and take a nap. 

Jamie has white linens on his bed, and I love, love how it looks, and I decided I wanted to do the same thing in our second bedroom. When we moved in to our house about a year ago, I made the guest bed with mismatched sheets, pillowcases, and bedspreads that we've accumulated over the years. And over the past year, I've slowly been accumulating all the pieces for a matching bed: bedspread from Bed Bath & Beyond, quilt from my mom's linen closet, pillowcases from Marshalls, and -- finally last weekend -- shams from T.J.Maxx. 

Drum roll, please ...

(You may recognize those white sheer curtains from this post.)

The shams were the last piece of the puzzle. The first time I priced shams, my mouth dropped. Like, $50 for one nice sham? And $20 for a poorly made one? (The sham and bedspread on my own bed were a gift.)

So I stopped in my beloved T.J.Maxx last weekend to look for shams, and, lo and behold, I found some nice quilted ones for $15. I usually go into T.J.Maxx around the change of the seasons to look around. Maybe I'll find a pair of jeans. Or maybe not. Maybe I'll find a winter coat. Or maybe not. Maybe I'll find a dress to wear to a wedding. Or maybe not. But very rarely do I go into T.J.Maxx with a shopping list and find what I'm looking for. It's hit or miss. I must've been lucky last weekend.

And now the guest bed is ready and waiting for guests! 

dining out: el centro

I loved the cool vibe in El Centro, where Tony and I met up Saturday evening with Mike, Jen, Jamie and Jamie's lady friend, Kristen. And I liked that the waiters mash the guacamole right at the table.

The guacamole itself was probably the best part of the meal.

I ordered the veggie tacos, which were made with cactus, and the food was fine, but I think I'm a wee bit snobby about Mexican food, having lived in Arizona for three years and eaten Mexican food as God intended. For the rest of my life, I think I'll always be a little disappointed whenever I eat Mexican food on the East Coast. Tony agreed, so maybe he's become a Mexican food snob, too.

The weather was beautiful again Saturday evening, so we all made our way back to Jamie's apartment and had some cocktails on the roof. About two hours into the evening, Mike and Jen let it drop into the conversation that they GOT ENGAGED last week when they were on vacation. Hugs and toasts all around!

<3

From the archives: 

dining out: matchbox

recipe: roasted asparagus

I love seeing my parents any time of year, but I particularly love seeing them in late spring because they always share their homegrown asparagus. Luckily for me, Tony and I were in Ohio last weekend for a wedding that just happened to fall during the asparagus harvest, and my dad sent me home with enough spears to keep us fed for a week. My friend Jamie once described my dad's asparagus as the best he's ever eaten, so now my dad, who apparently responds well to flattery, makes sure to pack a separate bag of asparagus for Jamie.

The weather was pretty cool Monday evening, so I decided to turn on the oven and roast the asparagus. Here's Monday's dinner of roasted asparagus with pierogies and black-eyed peas: 

Roasted Asparagus

• Asparagus
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Lay asparagus in a single layer on a baking sheet or baking dish, drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. 

Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes until the spears are crisp. 

weekend escape: scotland, maryland

Washington's traffic is never particularly easy to drive in, but sometimes it's almost unbearable to be in the car around here. Rush hour. Holiday weekends. Any time it rains. 

So the prospect of a Memorial Day getaway to Scotland, Md., became even more attractive once we figured out we wouldn't need to cross the dreaded Bay Bridge to get there. 

Scotland. I'd never heard of it either. But it turns out that it makes a fantastic little middle-of-nowhere weekend trip from D.C. Here's where it is on a map:

It's truly in the middle of nowhere, right on the Chesapeake Bay. My friends and I rented a three-bedroom, beachfront house on this prehistoric-looking dirt road:

Don't get me wrong. I love the city and all the perks of living in it, but sometimes I need to refresh myself with a weekend on a beach that looks like this:

Can this place get any better? Oh, yes, it can: It's only two hours from D.C. 

Tony and I made the trek with college pals Jamie and Mike along with Mike's girlfriend, Jen. Mike found our house on vrbo.com, a website where homeowners list their vacation rentals. I adore this website. When I travel now, I almost exclusively stay in houses like these rather than hotels. Being in a house makes vacation more comfortable, plus we can cook in the kitchen. Plus it's not a hotel. 

We got to talking to the folks who own the neighboring houses. It sounds like most of them live in D.C. or Annapolis and come down on weekends. Which got me daydreaming about buying a beach house of my own ... how much exactly is flood insurance? Snap out of it, Jessi -- one house is plenty! 

It's become something of a tradition for my friends and me to make a weekend trip to mark 30th birthdays -- first Philadelphia for Jamie's big day, then Canaan Valley, W.V., for my husband's. And that's what we were doing in Scotland: Jen's 30th.  

And any successful roadtrip to a new place always involves a side adventure. This time, we stopped at a flea market in Charlotte Hall, Md., which at first looked like a bust: bootleg DVDs, offbrand batteries, kitchen sponges. But then we happened upon several women selling vintage furniture and knickknacks that made me wish we'd made the trip in a U-Haul instead of a Chevy Malibu. I didn't leave with the cedar chest and dresser I had my eye on, but I did grab this beautiful brass lamp with a striking green glass shade. 

And it works! It's also a good fit with the green and plum colors of my bedroom.