Issue #3 August Edition
Spork.
Itchin’ Irritations in Kitchens & Resolutions
Special Recipies from Paula Deen and Julia Child!
View our preview to our special edition copy coming this September! You saw it here first
First off, thank you for picking up this month’s issue of Spork! We have a lot in store for you in this month’s edition , and we have many new things to come so do stay tuned . Spork focuses on a variety of topics, to intrigue our reader and always keep them engaged . In this issue you will read a handful of narratives about things that happen in family kitchens, recipe’s, interviews, and more! Kitchens can be considered the heart of many homes. It is where families gather as a collective unit to sit down and enjoy a meal . It is where people try new things, create aromas that circulate throughout the hallways of households, it is what causes the fire alarms to go off. Kitchens are an area where preparations for holiday meals are cooked . Kitchens are used for conversation and tradition . Merriam Webster defines kitchen as, “1. A place (as a room) with cooking facilities 2. The personnel that prepares, cooks and serves food 3. Cuisine .” Kitchens are the center of many homes today. Since kitchens are considered the center of homes, we have centered our magazine around this common room! The following articles you will come across vary in topic, but all have a common thread of kitchens. Reading these articles will give you a feel for kitchens during the holiday, during lunchtime , an Indian kitchen , and the kitchens of various chiefs such as Julia Child and Paula Deen . In addition , you will read a series of interviews from people I have known for a long time . Why is this of any interest to our readers? The people we interviewed are very different and the interviews demonstrate how every kitchen has a special uniqueness. In this issue we have a special preview to next months special edition to Spork . It features narratives about New York City along with different images of New York . This is only a preview of next month’s issue so make sure you check it out in September! Lastly, you might be looking at the left side of this letter and question why we chose to title our magzine after a somewhat dysfunctional object. The quote demonstrates the dysfunctionality of a “Spork” and while some of these articles might seem random or dysfunctional , they come together to (this might be a bit of a stretch) make a utensil! The different narratives, articles, interviews, recipes, and bios might leave you pondering ways to improve your kitchen or ways to look atthings from a brand new perspective . Regardless, I hope you enjoy this month’s edition of Spork! Thanks and bon appetite , Claire Seefried Editor
Contents Thanksgiving and Portion Control DO Match up!*
6-7
Daily Kitchen Interview, Matt G.
8-10
The Polavarapu Kitchen* 12-13 Open Campus: Jennings Edition*
14-15
Butter N Oil!* 16 Paula Deen Recipies, you will definetly enjoy! 17-21 Daily Kitchen Interview, Brendan P.
22-23
A Flashback With Julia Child*
24-27
Itchin’ Irritations in the Kitchen and Resolutions!*
28-31
Daily Kitchen Interview, Julia C.
33-34
A Ravioli Story.* 36 Cookie Day.* 38 Grandma Jane* 39 Preview to Next Month’s Special Feature: New York City 40-49
Don’t be fooled! while many diet regiments look very appealing, you can do many other alternatives that will get you the slim figure you are hoping for while feeling good and with little to no expense!
Thanksgiving is the one holiday a year when someone can load 4500 calories (yes, 4500 calories is typically how many calories the average person consumes during a thanksgiving meal) on their plate and it’s socially acceptable. Every year, my family goes on an excursion down to Akien, South Carolina to visit my grandparents. My Grandparents are in their mid-seventies and my grandpa has been going along with the whole “I’d rather be fat and happy” motto for a while. My grandma expresses her concern for my grandpa’s weight daily and yet he never fails to respond with “Mary, if you really want me to stop gaining weight why don’t you stop making cookies!” This always gets us to chuckle; especially since we know my grandpa would go into shock if she actually did stop making her famous, crisp, chocolate chip cookies which always rest in an aluminum coffee tin. As I was saying, my grandpa is continuing to get rounder and rounder around the edges and every time we see him his Green Bay Packers sweatshirt gets tighter and tighter. He has tried a series of diet regiments and this Thanksgiving he tried something new. After grace we were about to start digging into the steaming potatoes covered in gravy, with the turkey sliced to perfection when my grandpa insisted we wait. He got up, which takes a while as is, went into the other room, grabbed a small white box and sat back down. My grandma looked at him sternly and then rolled her eyes. My grandpa then
exchanged glances with each of us and then proceeded explained that he was trying, yet another new diet regiment. Here’s the kicker, this diet regiment allows you to do absolutely nothing.Yes, nothing! No working out, no portion control… NOTHING! The product is called Sensa and you simply “shake your Sensa” (the slogan used as advertised on TV) and it works it’s magic. My grandpa referred to Sensa as magical pixie dust and we all couldn’t help but burst into tears laughing.Yes, kitchens are also places where new dietary regiments are discovered or encouraged. If you are looking for some type of diet regiment, I suggest you stick with portion control,trying to maintain a balanced diet and working out daily. Sensa has been proven to work in some cases, however, one flaw of Sensa is that it doesn’t give you the balanced and correct nutritional diet you are looking for. Many diet regiments that are advertised on television do work and can work if you stick with them. The problem today is, people go on what I like to call “yo-yo diets”. They say they are going to start eating healthy and do so by investing in a program that will most likely benefit in the long run, but can be costly. Here is some advice, try it yourself first. If this is just another diet it is not worth the time or money. Try portion control. Instead of two slices of pizza stick to one. Simple enough right? If you are still hungry make sure you eat fruits and plenty of vegetables. Many studies are now saying your fruits and vegetables portion should
“with out dieting”.... an advertisment for Sensa. Accurate?
Thanksgiving and Portion Control DO Match Up!
be half of your meal. Avoid snacks that have higher sodium content than calorie count. Or... in general just avoid snacking! Set reminders on your phone to eat healthy and exercise. Try and get 60 minutes of exercise a day. If this is to much of a challenge start with working out for 30 minutes, build up to 45 and then you will get to the 1 hour work out you have been working towards! Notice, this diet regiments cost is exactly $0.00, TOTALLY WORTH IT!!! It takes a lot of effort to get motivated, but once you are motivated you have to stick with it. Don’t swing back and forth like a yo-yo, stick with it and you will be happy you did. Portion control, 60 minutes of exercise, and a positive and motivated mind can get you far.
An example of a “healthy eating plate”. Notice 1/2 of plate is fruits and veggies!
Daily Kitchen Interview, Matt G. age 17. the kitchen from a teenage boys perspective
As I sat in the Strozier library, I contemplated who would be willing to sit down for a few minutes and let me ask them a few brief questions in regards to an interview assigned for my English class. I opened my backpack, placed my binder on the oval table and then proceeded to take out my laptop. I opened Facebook and scrolled through my newsfeed, procrastinating doing this assignment and then my friend Matt Gallagher messaged me saying “Claire help, I’m so bored”. If that wasn’t a sign to call him up and interview him, I don’t know what is. Matt is one of my best friends. He is always there to talk, grab a bite to eat, or just converse with when you are super bored, like he was in this instance. Matt lives five minutes away so he casually swings by and will honk outside my house twice and I will just hop in his car knowing we are doing a Dunkin or Chipotle run. Matt works at a local pool in town. He works at the grill there and also teaches tennis lessons to younger kids. I feel like Matt’s job description suites him well- chief and teacher. I met Matt last year on a service trip to West Virginia, where we rebuilt houses for the Preston County community. Here, Matt and I instantly became friends. We were paired to work in the same group on a house that needed new siding and a new roof. While driving to the house I turned to Matt and said something in a joking matter, he laughed and we clicked, and as weird as it is have been best friends ever since. I called Matt and he answered with a “ALO”, a joke we have some how adapted, and then asked him about how
Q: What holiday was your favorite to spend in the kitchen? I always enjoyed Easter time, because my family and I always loved coloring eggs. One year, we colored eggs all different colors of countries. So we colored eggs the colors of the Spanish flag, Italian flag and so on. We always used dye and the invisible crayons, which allowed you to write things before dying the eggs. Growing up, I was always fascinated by that… but as my siblings and I got older the invisible crayon was used to draw perverted things that should just not be drawn on Easter eggs. My mom would always take the eggs out, when we were younger, and place the different dyes in
small cups with silver spoons in each cup so we could dye the eggs a spectrum of different colors. We always did this on the island of my kitchen and placed the cups from one end all the way to the other and walked around dipping the eggs in the dye. The tradition of dying eggs has sort of gone downhill though, but that was a great memory growing up in my kitchen.
his day was and then we started the interview. Q: Do you have any Specific memories taking place in your kitchen growing up? Holiday meals in my kitchen were always pretty big, so were birthday parties. Family dinner was also an important part of everyday; all of these things took place in my kitchen. During family dinners, it was usually during the school week but as my siblings left for college it became just me and my parents and dinner became more relaxed. Meaning, we were allowed to watch TV during dinner or eat at the island, the center of our kitchen, rather than the table, which was nice. Our island was a big focal point for my kitchen, because as you know, my kitchen is very
open. Watching different talent shows such as The Voice or America’s Got Talent was also done in our kitchen, because in our kitchen is a living room with a TV and couches, which made our kitchen very comfortable. But, going back to your question… my main memories taking place in the kitchen are preparation for holidays.
Tara, Matt, and myself
Matt and his families kitchen 2013
Q: Would your whole family color eggs together? Yes, it was just immediate family. We always did it the day before Easter, on our big island. There is a huge island in the middle of our kitchen, which opens to the living room so there is room for everyone. There is a small kitchen table to the left, but we wouldn’t use that for coloring eggs during the holiday.
Q: What is the most important part about a kitchen? I think the most important part about a kitchen is the openness. Having the island made our kitchen much more open and it allowed the living room to be near. The living room so close made the kitchen much more inviting and allowed you to have options in the kitchen. If you wanted to relax, eat and watch TV you could or you could choose to chat with
a quote that lies in Matt’s kitchen
Q: What would your dream kitchen look like? I guess I would like white cabinets, with a colorful backsplash, an open kitchen with a center island, similar to the one I have grown up with. The island was great to have growing up, mine had stools around the island for sitting and it just made the kitchen really functional, so I would definitely want to have stools again. Stainless steel appliances. A double oven would be cool. Classic fridge and stove. A big hood range over the stove. Granite counter tops and lots of storage and cabinet space. A nice big sink is a necessity and I guess that’s basically it.
people at the island because of the stools that surround it. Overall, just openness is important, because it forces you to have conversations even when you don’t want to have them.
Q: What are key necessities in your kitchen? In my kitchen, the dish washer is key because it is always running in my house. There are a lot of people, so there are always dirty dishes. It makes the kitchen more organized so not everything is always sitting in the sink. Also the stove, for all cooking purposes. Mac n cheese is constantly being boiled in my house so that’s important.
The Polavarapu Kitchen a kitchen in a traditional Indian home.
Apoorva Palavarapu is one of my closest
friends who brings a special uniqueness to our friend group. Not just because her name will always have a red squiggly line underneath it, or because of the obvious culture difference, but because of her unique personality which establishes her as an individual. Usha and Pradeep Polavarapu, Apoorva’s parents, came to America from Hyderabad, a city in South India, in search of a better life and opportunity, not just for themselves but for their family. They wanted to, in general, have a better lifestyle since India is a developing country. The kitchen at the Polavarapu residence resembles their Indian culture as it is very colorful and is located right near a place for worship. Their kitchen always
smells rich of Indian cuisine. On the shelves and island of the kitchen are pictures of Apoorva and Aditya, Apoorva’s younger brother, and places they have traveled to. Apoorva’s mother is always in the kitchen, baking Indian dishes, which means you never leave the Polavarapu ‘s with an empty stomach. There is always a barrel of crunchies, an Indian snack, awaiting us when entering their house. My friends and I, in a way, have developed a tradition of having oatmeal crisp in the morning after nights spent over at the Polavarpu’s. As we gather around the kitchen table with Indian rice, curry puffs, and samosas and again, talk.
Open Campus: Jennings Edition
Small chit chat and conversation with friends sometimes make a kitchen feel like the heart of the home.
A
s a senior at Chatham High School, a public high school located in a suburban town in New Jersey, you are awarded the privilege of “open campus” which simply allows you to go off campus during the lunch hour. Michele Jennings, is one of my closest friends who, conveniently, lives right next to the high school. Because her house is so close in proximity to the high school, the Jennings household became the “go to” location during open campus. We would enter from the backdoor and would always be welcomed in by Mrs. Jennings, Michelle’s mom. Mrs. Jennings has short brown hair, which bobs as she walks. She has an energetic smile and has a loud laugh that is contagious. We set our backpacks down and gather around the granite island, located in the center of the Jennings kitchen and converse about anything from schoolwork to gossip or any conversational topic out there, we have literally discussed it all.
The Jennings always have odd food such as frittata, an egg based dish, to lychee, a Chinese fruit that looks similar to a cactus in the shape of a sphere. Frittata can contain anything thing from meats to cheeses and has the scent of omelets but tastes like quiche, which makes frittata a fairly confusing dish. The kitchen is filled with wooden cabinets and the sound of a teakettle steaming. The hot tea is served in ivory mugs with thin brush strokes of blue paint. The kitchen becomes filled with senior girls around noon laughing and talking every day. The Jennings kitchen became an escape from the hectic and sometimes stressful school day.
“The Kitchen really is the castle itself. This is where we spend our happiest moments and where we find the joy of being a family.” – Mario Batali
Butter N Oil!
Paula Deen, the famous icon! Read here about her story and some new recipies you should bring to your kitchen.
Whether it’s watching Kristen order. This disorder did not bring Paula down because as a result Wiig impersonating her on Saturof it she spent a lot of time in her day Night Live, or tuning into the kitchen where she grew more and Food network, we are all familiar more as a chief. Since then, she with the glowing and lively face has made it on several television of Ms. Paula Deen. Her memorable recipes served “Onions and bacon cook- programs, such as the with “butter n oil” ing up just makes your Food Network, and has become not only a sucpermeate through kitchen smell so good. In cessful chief but also a many kitchens in fact, one day I’m going famous icon. Paula reAmerica. Many see to come up with a room leases many new recipes Paula as a famous deodorizer that smells on her website monthly. icon, known for her cooking and admi- like bacon and onions. It’s One recipe that we think the readers of The Daily ration of food, but a fabulous smell.” Kitchen might enjoy is not many know the – Paula Deen different recipes involvchallenges Paula ing zucchini. Zucchini is considhad to go through. Paula’s marered a New World food and goes riage had failed and to make matters worse, her parents passed well with anything. Check out the recipies on the next away shortly after. Paula began to suffer agoraphobia, an anxiety dis- few pages for tasty treats!
Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, plus more for pie plate 2 (1-ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate 1 cup sugar 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 eggs 1 cup pecans, chopped Marshmallow Cream Frosting, recipe follows Whipped cream or ice cream, for serving Marshmallow Cream Frosting: 7 ounces marshmallow cream 1/2 cup butter, softened 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 3 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar 2 tablespoons milk
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a circular pie plate. Melt chocolate and butter in an iron skillet over medium heat; stir to prevent scorching. Remove from heat when melted. Whisk in sugar, vanilla, flour, and salt. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs together and add a little hot brownie mixture. This will temper the eggs and not cook them, when they go into the skillet. Pour eggs into skillet along with the pecans. Mix well. Pour into prepared pie plate. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes. Let cool and frost. Cut into squares, top with whipped cream or ice cream and serve. Marshmallow Cream Frosting: Beat all the ingredients together in a large bowl until well combined.
A Paula Deen Recipie!
Crispy Oven Zucchini Fries
½ cup all purpose flour 1 beaten egg with 1 egg white ½ cup panko breadcrumbs ¼ cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese ½ teaspoon smoked paprika Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper 2 zucchini, sliced into ½ inch thick and 4 inches long Cooking spray Garlic herb mayo, recipe follows Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Add flour to a pie plate and whisk in some salt and pepper. Beat the eggs together in another pie plate. In a third pie plate, whisk together the panko, Parmesan, smoked paprika, and another big pinch of salt and pepper. Dip the zucchini in the flour, then in egg, and then through the breadcrumb mixture. Place on a sheet tray and spritz with non-stick spray. Bake for 10 minutes, then flip, and continue cooking for 10 minutes more, until golden and crisp.
Ingredients
2 eggs, beaten 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar 8 tablespoon (1 stick) butter 3 oz. cream cheese, softened 1 8-inch graham cracker crust Topping 1 1/2 cups strawberries, sliced 1 cup whipped cream 1/4 cup sugar Whole berries and mint leaves for garnish
Directions
In a medium mixing bowl, using a hand mixer, beat the eggs, powdered sugar, butter and cream cheese until fluffy. Pour mixture over prepared crust and chill until firm. Topping In a large mixing bowl, using a hand mixer, whip the heavy cream and sugar until stiff peaks form. Spread 1/2 of the whipped cream over pie, then layer in the sliced strawberries. Top with the remaining whipped cream and chill for 4-6 hours. Garnish with whole berries and mint leaves before serving. Recipe courtesy Paula Deen
Daily Kitchen Interview, Brendan P. age 18. The kitchen from a teenage boys perspective
Still sitting in the library, I contemplated who I should call next. I wanted another male’s perspective, because a kitchen, which was the basis of this interview, is a common place for teenage boys, who are constantly eating. Brendan, is another one of my best friends who is very full of himself, but is great company. Brendan and I have been friends since sixth grade, not friends, but rather enemies. Brendan would always tease me when we were younger and it would drive me insane. At the same time I think I enjoyed his teasing because my sixth grade self was in awe that a boy would actually make the effort to talk to me. When seventh grade came along and all of our classes matched, he stopped teasing me and decided to put up with me. From that point on we were close friends. Every year from sixth grade to twelfth grade we had at least one class together and senior year, it all came full circle when Brendan was surprisingly my prom date. Having been friends with him for so long it made prom all the better. It didn’t have to be like previous dances I had been to where it was awkward going with a guy you didn’t know all that well. As I mentioned, Brendan is very full of himself so he tried to convince me he was the best looking at prom. And although the oversized jacket for his tux might make this statement a bit of a stretch, I do think we were a hot topic of the night (not really, but one can pretend). I was lying down in one of the booths in the Stroizer library with my shoes off, very relaxed waiting for Brendan to answer. Brendan answered with an annoyed voice, which is not atypical of him, so I knew it would be more of a struggle to get him to answer a few questions but he eventually caved and the interview began.
Brendan and his families kitchen 2013
Q: Do you have any specific memories taking place in your kitchen growing up? Before my brother Austin’s hockey games my family always blasts music and dances around the kitchen so my brother gets psyched up for his game. We have an island in the middle of our kitchen, so we dance around it, blasting whatever songs we feel like. My mom lives for these moments and always tries to take a picture, which usually kills the mood. But… yeah… I would have to say dancing around the kitchen before Austin’s hockey game is probably my favorite memory in our kitchen. Which
is sort of weird when you think about it because that has nothing to do with preparing a meal or anything, but then again my mom hates cooking and my dad isn’t to fond of it either so… I guess it does make sense that my favorite memory in our kitchen is something completely unrelated to cooking. Q: What would your dream kitchen look like? I don’t know, marble countertops I guess. Q: Seriously think… 10 years from now. You’re married. You come home from work… what do you want your kitchen, which could very well be the center of your home, to look like? Claire, I really don’t know. If there’s food and a 6-pack I would probably be good with whatever. But I do want one of those cool apron’s that says “#1 DAD” or something funny like that, my Grandpa always wore one like that and I would wear it when I went to his house when I was younger. So... definitely cool aprons. Q: What is the most important part about a kitchen? The fridge, actually no the cabinets. That’s where the food is. We always keep freshly baked cookies in my kitchen cabinets so the pantry is constantly open. We
have a basket at the bottom of the pantry with a variety of different chips. We also always have a barrel of pretzels. Having two brothers and myself in the house allowed for constant snacking, so I was constantly running downstairs opening the cabinets in search for something to eat, and so were Collin and Austin. Q: What are the key necessities in a kitchen? The fridge is probably the biggest necessity because of the food. My brothers and I need to eat ya know… Also, the kitchen as a whole is probably the most important part of my families house because of the food, which you obviously need, but it forces my family to converse and talk about our days and events in our life and stuff.
Brendan and myself on our way to prom 2013
A flashback with Julia. Julia Child was a popular TV chief and author in the 1920s. When visiting France Julia decided to write a book titled , “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”. Some people say there was something special about this book . The French words, made every recipe seem romantic, drawings of things most people might not understand were scattered throughout the cookbook . Julia Child wanted to make food she had fallen in love with and share it with the everyday housewife in the 1950s. This means she was working with people who were starting from scratch , knowing very little about cooking, who needed to use food that would be found in your everyday supermarket. This was not an easy task , considering a lot of the meals Julia had come up with required unique foods that might not be found at a local supermarket. Julia’s kitchen was not only the heart of where she fell madly in love with cooking but also where she hosted three television shows. Her kitchen also became the experimentation site for new recipes to be tested . Julia’s Cambridge , Massachusetts kitchen had light blue cabinets, wooden counter tops, and a wall collected with pots and pans. The wall with pots and pans appeared in many of the television shows and was a unique attribute , which is not typical in most homes. Julia Child has many famous recipes, which we have decided to share! Turn to page _ for a few tasty treats to spice up your everyday meal!
Julia’s famous kitchen, with pots and pans featured behind her, which appeared in every TV show
“In Department stores, so much kitchen equipment is bought indiscriminately by people who just come in for men’s underwear ” - Julia Child
Julia, pounding a chicken on one of the many TV episodes she was in
Itchin’ Irritations in the Kitchen! Spill milk? Burnt toast?
Read solutions to get over the every day irriations kitcehns bring!
The kitchen can be the most irritating place on earth. The dishwasher is full, but no one turned it on or you burn your toast… feelings of frustration begin. You decide to have some PB&J but when you take out the bread, it’s moldy. Oil gets on your favorite shirt… Joy. Your mom spends what seems like a year preparing a meal and it tastes like crap. Irritations in the kitchen are totally normal and we all experience it. “I am constantly unloading and reloading my dishwasher and always manage to somehow stain my shirt while doing it!” Says an avid reader of Spork. These irritations leave most of us steaming with frustration, so the writers of The Daily Kitchen have developed some solutions that will leave you feeling less frustrated and more at ease in the kitchen. Here they are:
Problem: Solution:
Moldy bread
Bread, meet trash. Trash, meet bread. End of discussion. (Not much of a solution, we apologize)
her s rea w e h h s to t s to ll di u e f m Co :A e ha o . n m t i o e y l Prob on: Get toething ever swaying thave i t ou som io start y u l s f i o I S tion it ! d will d a r a s i o l e h e aliza rn up th ad and r turns, t will u lo king rden and in a do, t at and t ry e t b , a bu ntribute y e l i f o th m ge fa with less ce to co r a l a han ou c y a e v ines. e t n u lea o o y ever itchen r e v i g ily k a d the
Problem:
Mom makes a meal that tastes like crap.
Solution:
Problem: Solution:
Burnt toast
There isn’t much of a solution for this problem, but start all over. Have Patience. Patience is key in the kitchen and remember, these are common problems everyone goes through. By coming to this realization, your mind should be more at ease. IT”S NOT JUST YOU! Don’t cry over spilled milk, and definitely don’t cry over burnt toast, it’s not worth the tears… it’s toast.
Honesty is the best policy (?) Not always. Depending on the situation, if it is a meal your mom has worked for hours preparing and it seems to be a mutual feeling of disgust towards dinner, I’m sure she will catch the drift. In this case, no need to put or put up a fuss, try and eat what you can but kindly tell her you prefer her pork chops much better than the mystery meat you are trying to chow down.
Problem: your shirt.
Solution:
Oil or any food product stains
TIDE TO GO! It’s great and always handy. Something that you should carry with you everywhere! At home, at the mall, at work, in the car! ANYWHERE! Tide to go works wonders and you will be thankful you have it when you spill your hot coffee all over you shirt right before you have that big conference. Definitely worth the investment.
Daily Kitchen Interview, Julia C. age 20. The kitchen from a young womans perspective.
As I sat at one of the circular booths in the Stroizer library, waiting for Julia to stop by I got up and walked around for a minute. The long day of studying and lack of sleep was getting to me. I paced back and fourth for a minute or two and then sat back down. Then, I saw Julia walking on her tiptoes, approaching the booth I was sitting in. I got up and gave her a quick hug. Julia always has a story to tell, and this time she was telling me how she forgot her FSU card in her room so had to quickly sneak into the library so she wouldn’t have to walk all the way back to her dorm. Julia and I met when we were younger because we both shared a mutual friend who I would hang out with in the summers when visiting my dad who lives in Florida, and who she was friends with because they went to the same school and both lived in Florida. One day when I was hanging out with Ali, our mutual friend, we went to the beach to meet up with some of her friends from school. I spent that day hanging out with Ali and her friends but specifically made conversation with Julia. We never talked much after that, but ironically we both ended up attending Florida State and got in touch before arriving for Summer C, and have been hanging out with each other constantly. Julia is an extreme athlete who is dedicated, not just to her sports, but also studies. She is a great friend who always makes you laugh, and can get others to laugh easily too. When I told Julia some background information about the interview, and how it relates to kitchens, her eyes widened an immediately became excited because Julia spends a lot of time in the kitchen cooking many different recipes. Her favorite thing to bake is peanut butter blossoms, which she makes for her family and friends birthdays and when ever she is craving them.
Q: Do you have any specific memories taking place in your kitchen growing up? Heck yeah. I would always help out in the kitchen with my mom and my grandma. When I was younger, I always wanted to cook my own stuff but I was never allowed to because my grandma and mom were worried I would get cut with a knife or burned. And when I was probably in sixth or seventh grade, I was allowed to start cooking more on my own. Then my friend Courtnee and I would cook for fun when we would have sleepovers or were just hanging out at each other’s houses.
Do you still enjoy cooking now? Yes, I love to cook. Cooking is my dream. I would love to go to culinary school at some point. Ever since I was young I loved it and when I was finally able to cook more on my own, I fell in love even more with it. I love not using recipes and just coming up with unique meals. I just really love to cook; everything about it makes it enjoyable for me. Q: what’s your favorite thing to bake? I love to make penne alla vodka, Oreo truffles, and peanut butter blossoms.
Q: what are peanut butter blossoms? They are the most amazing peanut butter cookies with Hershey kisses. It is a thicker type of peanut butter cookie, rolled up into a ball, rolled in sugar, and then placed onto a pan, put into the oven for 7 minutes. Take it out, place the Hershey kisses on top of the cookie, put them back in the oven for 2 minutes, take them out and … they are the best thing you will ever eat. Q: What would your dream kitchen look like? It would be two. Because I remember when I was younger, my aunt lived in many different houses. Looking back, it was sort of weird… but she would live in two houses at once and then would sell them because you get more money that way or something… I’m not totally sure. But anyway, the house she liked the most was the one she had 2 kitchens in. She would bake in one and cook in the other. It makes it easier when preparing big meals. And it allows more room and it would be so much better with more space and organization, with nobody in it except me. Granite countertops, because you can cut on them and it would not scratch them, you can place hot dishes on them with out leaving a mark. I wouldn’t want an electrical stove, I would want a fire burner. And definitely, two kitchens.
Julia, in France. Spring 2013
Julia and her families kitchen 2011
Q: why would you prefer a fire burner over an electrical stove? I feel like its more real and I don’t know, it’s just what I’m used to. I haven’t used the other kind and I don’t really want to. Q: What is the most important part about a kitchen? The kitchen all together is important. You need a stove, oven, everything. You can’t just put the pizza in the oven, you need the sauce, and put it in the oven and everything just goes together so well. When your making, Oreo truffles, you need a fridge. They won’t settle with out being refrigerated. But to melt the chocolate, you need the stove. And then you need the fridge again. So the kitchen as a collective unite is very important. Q: What are the key necessities in your kitchen? I guess the countertop. That’s where you show the finished product. It’s where it all stands, and is where people gather around, and overall is just a very important aspect of the kitchen.
A Ravioli Story a third grade picky eater with a sneaky mind.
I hate ravioli. I was eleven years old, my siblings had been excused from the dinner table and I sat there pushing my fork into the cheese filled noodle pouting and refusing to eat. At the time, our kitchen was rooster theme. The wallpaper had roosters on it, the plates, hand towels; I believe we even had a rooster clock. I remember staring at the circular table, which my step mom had spray painted black and red colors to go with the rooster theme, in denial in regards to finishing my meal. My dad, sitting at the opposite end of the table, looked at me sternly and claimed I would not be allowed to leave the table unless I finished my meal. “You know Claire, there are starving kids in Africa.” If I had a dollar for every time I heard that line growing up… I would have made bank. It was just my dad and I sitting in silence with the background noise of the TV muffling sports stats. Occasionally, my dad would look up and glance at the TV and when he would do this, I would carefully drop my ravioli, one at a time, to the hardwood floor that circulated our kitchen, and pretend to chew and swallow, with disgust. Maggie, our dog, was right underneath me and while she slurped, chewed, and swallowed the ravioli I was supposed to be eating, I would make noises with my chair, subtly, so my dad wouldn’t pick up on what I was doing. Once Maggie finished the last of my dinner, I showed my dad my plate and asked to be excused. “See, was that hard?” My dad asked. “Nope, not at all” I replied. And that is why I would say I was a childhood genius, the kitchen, my laboratory.
side note- this was not my reaction to Chef Boy-ar-dee, but by all means try it!
“What ’s Cooking Grandma?!?!” “Grab the phone , take out menu is in the left drawer.”
C
kie Day
Buddy the Elf once said, “the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear”, and while I agree with Buddy, I think his argument would be better suited if he chose to say, “the best way to spread Christmas cheer is giving out cookies to all near”. I mean who doesn’t like cookies? One tradition that never leaves the Christmas holiday unnoticed is the cookie making. Holidays bring families close together. When families are together… we eat! There is even a whole holiday designated to eating! After my family has piled into our kitchen we get together and begin whipping out bowls, spatulas, and every other kitchen tool imaginable and get cracking. Cookies cover the countertops as flour covers the floor. The messiness begins followed by the hounding of questions, “How’s your boyfriend?”, “Nope don’t have one.. “So… what do you want to major in?”, “Yupp, haven’t figured that out yet.”, “Where can you see yourself in 10 years?” “I DON’T KNOW”. Then, laughter. The egg cracks and the whole shell falls down with it. Seeing my grandma smile makes everyone else smile too. We finish with several tins filled with butter cookies wrapped in wax paper to keep warm, all configured in different designs. We then proceed to give them to everyone on our street, to teachers, to friends and to more family. The “cookie day” spent in the kitchen with family, playing Michael Buble’s Christmas soundtrack, signing, dancing, and baking together is always a great day.
If it ’s microwavable it ’s in Grandma’s kitchen . Shying away form typical Grandma’s who bake home made cookies to dunk in milk and prepare a perfect turkey on Thanksgiving, my grandmother prefers anything that can be cooked in less than 30 minutes. Velveta , corn dogs, chicken fingers, dilly pops, and other frozen/microwavable goods are all your typical items you will find in the kitchen of Mary Jane Seefried .
“New York City. Cue “New York, New York” by Frank Sinatra, followed by bright lights by Cee-Lo Green, enter an ambiance of tall buildings, bright lights, weird smelling people, yellow cars, and hot pretzels... and you are in one of the world’s most densly populated and most phenomenal city... New York.” -Claire Seefried
New York City
Third grade, nine years old. My hair was unevenly cut, right above my shoulders, making the unevenness even more noticeable. I had recently gotten teeth pulled so my smile was mainly gums. My eyes had dark circles, because of my insomnia. I had recently gone through a growth spurt so all of my jeans rested two to three inches above my ankles. My mom and I walked to the local train station, which was just one left turn and one crosswalk away from my house. I looked around and saw a wide variety of different people who were also ready to board the train headed to Penn Station, located in New York, New York.
The city, I the uneven haired, toothless nine year-old was eager to see if what I had seen in movies was real. I didn’t believe it could be what I saw in the movies, because how could one city generate enough electricity to power all of Times Square? The train whistled and sprinted through the track. I sat in my seat, across from my mom and would let out small gasps of air drawing small flowers on the train window. About 30 minutes into the 45 minute train ride, I saw it. Among many other tall buildings lied, The Empire State Building. It felt as if I was entering some type of parallel uni-
verse where all the people shrunk and all the buildings grew. My ears popped and everything went dark. We were in a tunnel and the lights in the train car began to flicker. I started to worry. However, as I looked around I noticed everyone seemed at ease. I figured the flickering lights and darkness must be some type of normality. My mom stood up and so did everyone around her. She grabbed my hand and suddenly, the train let out a quick scream and came to a complete stop. This was it. My mom squeezed my hand and smiled at me. My heart started to race. We excited the train and everyone was closely packed together as we searched for the stairs. Walking up the stairs was an immediate challenge as I felt shorter then everyone around me and didn’t have a second to look down because the vast groups of people were constantly moving. When we reached the last step on the staircase, everything seemed to space out. I heard a saxophone. As my mom and I walked forward more, the sound grew louder. A black man with a corduroy jacket was playing the saxophone while dancing around Penn Station. People began to gather around and throw a dollar bill or spare change, in what looked to be the case he kept his instrument in. Upon exiting the station, I felt as if a symphony was narrating my life. I felt like an orchestra had reached forte and accelerando and as we walked up a final set of stairs, to finally be on the streets of New York, the orchestra had let the first chair violinist take over and play a single harmonic note. One note, resembling the rush of emotions that came to me when witnessing the rush of taxis, the smell of smoke and urine, the aromas of hot pretzels and hot dogs, the homeless man spitting up to the left of me, the Abercrombie model the street, and the I heart New York stickers and T-shirts that surrounded what seemed to be every street. I was in awe. I was in New York City, and I felt like I was the star of a movie. This trip to New York City was the first of many. This trip lead to my obsession with every TV show that takes place in New York City. This trip lead to my love for Broadway plays. This trip lead to my interest in fashion, food, and culture. This trip lead to my want to spend every birthday in
this city over any roller skating or sleepover party imaginable. This trip lead to my dream of eventually working and living in New York City. Graduating third grade and starting fourth grade brought about all new obstacles. My teeth had grown in and my hair evened out, but I started to become more socially awkward. Constantly reading Harry Potter, being horrible with athletics, attempting to be a tomboy, obsessively biting my nails, and being able to quote every episode of Hannah Montana and That’s So Raven, pretty much sums up my fourth grade years. I continued to obsess over New York and as a fourth grader; I wanted to do many touristy things. As I continued to grow, my love for New York
Jazz, something I fell in love with because of being exposed to New York
one actually dances. We were going to avoid being forced to go with a guy in our grade who we barley talk to then end up avoiding for the rest of the year because the dance was so incredibly awkward. My friends and I decided we were going to ditch homecoming and catch an early morning train, and spend the day in the city. Starting the day out at the Metropolitan MuseCampbell’s Soup, One of Warhol’s well known pieces
City focused less on the touristy attractions and more on the little things that made up New York, that weren’t in every book about things to do in New York. I would no longer want to just go to places to take pictures to be able to say I had been there. Instead, I would want to walk the streets of New York and just admire it and its people.
The New York Library
Homecoming 2012 Homecoming can be defined as an instance of coming home. While many people celebrate homecoming by dance or game, my friends and I celebrated it by returning toa place we like to call home. Homecoming at my school is similar to most schools, I’m guessing. There is always a big football game, which we inevitably loose every single year… followed by a homecoming dance, which takes place in our school gym. Girls put on dresses that are overpriced and guys suit up. Pictures are taken an hour before entering the school gym, leaving your face feeling sore from posing for long increments of time. Upon entering the dance, you stand around and say hi to people you don’t normally talk to and proceed to compliment everyone on how great they look and then leave. Yes, you get dressed up to spend a grand total of 30 minutes at a dance and then leave to try and find a good after party, which is a bust every year. This year was different. My friends and I decided we were sick of going to a dance where no
um of Art exploring the Andy Warhol exhibit. As we walked up the MET steps the sound of a guitar began to strum. As I turned around I saw an older woman with thick dark hair beginning to pluck a few chords on her guitar. We sat down, feeling as if we were in an episode of Gossip Girl, and continued to watch this woman strum her guitar. She began
to strum it more intensely and then started to slap the outer part of the guitar. Turning herself into a full orchestra, more people began to crowd around and watch her. She was phenomenal. We stood up and clapped and then walked into the MET. Classical music was playing from speakers. As you walked farther in to the museum it grew more silent and the music had reached pianissimo. Upon entering the area where the Andy Warhol exhibit was being held, the classical music was no longer as cheerful, it was in a minor mode and made the mood seem much darker. Andy Warhol started pop art, which is very different than any art of his time. As we walked through the different exhibits the chitchat would grow louder amongst individuals staring at his pieces. After the MET, we went to Central Park and laid out on the grass. The sound of a baseball landing in a glove was heard as a father and son had
You can’t pass Nuts4Nuts and not ger honey roasted nuts, one of the best stands in New York
danced on the surrounding walls of the show. People on the stage would stop to a beat that was not rhythmic and got everyone to join and start dancing randomly. Sweating, smiling, and having a ball, it was clear this trip “coming home” had beaten Chatham High School’s Homecoming. Fuerza Bruta, NYC 2012.
a catch. The happy cheer of a young girl catch a Frisbee followed by a loud applause of people watching. The chilling fall winds sang to the trees and caused them to move to their arms and rustle their leaves. We sat and just embraced the settling sounds the city had to offer. The sizzling sound of the waffles and dinges stand began to make our mouths water. Our next stop was Fuerza Bruta which was filled with kinetic aerial imagery. It is an interactive show that left my friends and myself with our hearts pounding. The show was truly mind blowing. We entered and it began with a loud BAM and then music followed. The music was by no ways main stream and was extremely loud. A man ran through a series of moving walls in the middle of the audience as woman
St Paddy’s Day Upon entering the train, for yet another trip to New York, I took out my gloves and made my scarf tighter to feel its warmth. It was one of the coldest days yet and it was March 17th, Saint Patrick’s day. A day where everyone is Irish, and can drink their brains out and not have a care in the world. As we boarded the train, the crumbling of a brown paper bag and opening of a bottle echoed. It was only 9 am, but I didn’t question it as it was St. Patrick’s Day. The tripping and stumbling of passengers began. Being exposed to the city atmosphere on a holiday was an especially interesting experience. The city was bleeding green and orange. Cheering of glasses and the sounds of bagpipes were the sounds of the streets. The pitter-patter of the rain hit the
O’ Connly’s Bar, New York, New York St. Patricks Day
The City with friends, June 2013
New York City, St. Patricks Day Blizzard 2013
pavement and people shuffled (more like stumbled) their feet to try and get undercover. The Saint Patrick’s Day parade marched down the street with out an audience to cheer them on because of the weather. My friends and I saw this and immediately stood at one of the curbs and screamed and cheered for the different counties that passed by. Screaming our brains out as the different counties passed by, and allowing ourselves to be drenched from head to toe due to the unfortunate weather, resulted in laryngitis and a cold. However, it was another memorable trip into New York. People Watching The demographical statistics overpower those of many other cities. Struggling artists, garbage men, homeless and hungry, businessmen and woman, soldiers, dancers, actors and actresses, writers, and more surround the streets of New York as people walk the streets they do so in different manners. Street performers use the sides of buildings to dance and do flips that leave people in awe. The
sounds of different shoes strutting along the sidewalks. The voices of different languages, expand New Yorks culture and make it all the more diverse. I can think of many times I went into the city and ate outside a restaurant and was unable to converse with the person I was eating with because we were both just watching the people pass by. The Statue of Liberty, The Empire State Building, Central Park, the MET, Madison Square Garden, the Guggenhiem, Rockefeller Center, Grand Central Station, the Bronx Zoo, Ellis Island, the Highline, Radio City Musical are all locations we have seen on TV or read about in books. All of these places are located in the one and only‌ New York City. New York City became a place I had dreamed of going my whole life. And when I turned 9, my mom and I took the train and I got to witness the amazing things this city brought to tourists, natives, and every day people. New York City is a place with endless and unimaginable possibilities. It is a central location for TV shows and Oscar awarding films. One can visit the city a complete tourist. While another can live there and explore new horizons on a daily basis. New York City is a place for exploration. It is the city that never sleeps. It is a place of tradition, old and new. New York, New york.
Special thanks to all of the following magazines for allowing Spork to flourish, because of the brilliant things these magazines bring that help us get fresh ideas for our magazine! Make sure you check all of them out!!! People Magazine One element that makes this magazine all the more successful is its ability to draw attention to specific points of the text. In an interview with Matt Perry, they did a nice job bolding specific quotes to make them stand out more. They did this by using a text box and placing them out of line with the columns. I found this to be a clever way to emphasize a specific point in the interview nicely. This draws more attention to the reader, and by using an interesting pull quote it makes the reader want to read the whole article. Men’s Journal An element I enjoy in this magazine is the notebook section. In this section they have included different stories and a successful random assortment of things. This adds a unique aspect to this magazine that makes it different and interesting. This section of the magazine includes book reviews, movie reviews, interviews, and short stories. In Kiss the Cook, we have several different articles from different viewpoints, this idea was sparked by Men’s Journal’s notebook section. Cosmopolitan One thing I like about this magazine is how they use collages. They do this for fashion segments. They collage different articles of clothing and use captions to describe them. I find it interesting that they collage different pictures and use style tips and what not, because it draws attraction to the page. Using this would be helpful because it’s not all text; it’s a lot of pictures, which gives the magazine more to look at, and more variety. Something we will be incorporating in future editions! Thank you Cosmo. Tastes of the USA This magazine does a very nice job using images. It incorporates pictures of places around America and different pictures of food. It does so by allowing the picture to be the main focus of the page(s) and then places the recipe or article to a far side. This is a good way to lay out a magazine and is something we have tried to incorporate in Spork! 5 Ingredients 10 Minutes This magazine does a great job with its fonts! It does so by staying consistent with one particular font for titles, one for recipes, one for articles, and more. For recipes they only use one font and for titles they use a different font but sustain it for only titles. This makes the magazine organized while still being unique. 5 Ingredients 10 Minutes The lay out is also done in a nice way. Pictures occupying one side, text on the other. By doing this it provides more of an image for the reader and makes the lay out look much more put together and professional. They use two pages for one large picture and then incorporate the text which is a clever way of arranging it. The Spoon This magazine titles each segment and uses two pages to have a title per segment. By doing this it
gives an interesting preview of what each segment will present! The font is also very clear and spread apart which makes this magazine a very easy read. These are things we will be sure to incorporate in our magazine! At Wood Magazine In this magazine the letter to the editor explains the features in this particular edition of the magazine but compares it to previous issues. This is something we will try and adapt to our magazine in the future! By doing this it gives the reader a nice preview of what they are going to read. Tastes of the USA This magazine also has an interesting letter to the editor. It uses a quote and then expands from there. By doing this it makes it more engaging then just explaining what readers will gain from reading this magazine. We tried this with our issue this month. Hope you enjoyed it! Thanks Tastes of the USA magazine for the great ideas. Cosmopolitan Another great feature in this magazine is the cover. Cosmopolitan is always able to make their covers very busy while still looking organized. In this issue, they stuck to a color scheme and worked around the person, to make it work even better. Bon Appetit In this magazine, a great feature. Is the use of different fonts. This is apparent from just the cover. In this magazine, they use a variety of different fonts for different articles and for different segments. This makes each page have a different touch and makes it very unique. We tried to incorporate the use of different fonts, with out being to overbearing in this months issue. Hope you enjoyed that feature! Thanks Bon Appetit for the ideas!! Men’s Fitness This magazine was very helpful in seeing how to place advertisements. Men’s fitness does so by using advertisements as half a page. Most magazines tend to use full-page ads to really get the advertisement across to their viewers but Men’s Fitness had successful and intriguing advertisements, even though they were half pages.