Between the 3rd being a federal holiday and obviously having the 4th off, I finagled myself another long week and to be honest, for most of it, I didn't know what to do with myself for a large chunk of it. So, I caked and mixed and prepped for the party...and then twiddled my thumbs. I really need to start my studies at the University of Maryland or find something better to do with myself.
I did occupy myself on Friday though ( : Boyfriend and I went out to Faquier County, VA and picked berries and delicious vegetables. I've picked blueberries, blackberries, and apples before, but before Friday, I'd never picked raspberries let alone carrots, zucchini, squash, green onions, banana and green peppers, and lettuce. Between the beautiful weather and the delicious veggies, it was a fabulous trip.
Later that day, we went into DC and I finally hit up Hill's Kitchen. I tried to exercise some restraint, but couldn't resist a few quirky purchases including a kitchen utensil holder, a rooster-shaped wooden cutting board, alphabet ice trays, and a stirsby (damn cute marketing gimmicks!). I must try to restrain my impulse kitchentry purchases in the future. Meanwhile, boyfriend bought both an artichoke dip jar and an artichoke spoon rest. Who knew the boy had such a thing for the crazy vegetable?
Saturday, I ran the Autism Speaks Fourth of July 5K with the fantastically funny Elizabeth Williams. I'm not a big fan of 5Ks at this point because I'm more of a tortoise and they're designed for hares. However, Autism Speaks is a very worthwhile cause, I already know the course from running it last year, I know where the race starts with mapquesting (huge bonus), and they give out good shirts which always sweetens the pot in my book. Anyhoo, The Elizabeth and I finished nearly neck and neck, I improved upon my previous time by 13 seconds, and we both appreciated the post-race pizza provided by Potomac Pizza (pretty tasty pizza even for a less than fanatic pizza fan like Miss Rhino). All in all and despite the early start and my lack of sleep the night before, I'm glad I participated in the 5K. Even more exciting, Elizabeth and I plotted a 20K, a half-marathon, and perhaps a relay race to run in the coming month. Rhino hopes to stampede the competition in all events... or at least get a good hustle out of her hide.
Given the race's early start, I returned to my roost with lots of excess time to kill. So, I took the Teet by storm before the last minute holiday grillers arrived and then headed into my kitchen command post and got to work. First, I created Ina Garten's/Barefoot Contessa's lemon yogurt cake for future use in Tyler Florence's lemon curd trifle with fresh berries (always a showstopper). I even made it a tad healthier by subbing some applesauce for the oil and using Eggland's best eggs. I then boiled up some more eggs for my always improvised deviled eggs and before I hit the shower, I salted my coleslaw mix for its extended colander stay. Clean and fresh after 15 minutes, I plucked the cake from the oven. An hour or two later, I assembled the coleslaw's dressing. Four hours later, I rinsed and dried the cabbage and mixed in the dressing. Coleslaw complete... until I realized it made too little (I made another batch on Sunday). As I said, I need to find better ways to occupy myself.
After a night of fireworks and an ultra-late dinner with boyfriend, on Sunday afternoon I put together my deviled eggs and after a literal run to the Teet, I rubbed down the pork butt for Tyler Florence's pulled pork and put it to rest in the fridge overnight.
Today, with most of my prep complete, I shoved the pork butt in the oven at 12:30, set up Paula Deen's cholestrol-ridden baked beans, layered up the trifle, and heated up some homemade bbq sauce. It's been a big weekend of cooking, boiling, and baking, but I think it'll all be worthwhile in the end.
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