Randi with an i

My 30 closet essentials for being a grown up

October 20, 2013 Randi

Happy Sunday! The first eight weeks of this semester is over, and the second eight weeks is starting on Tuesday. Homecoming weekend and an exciting day at the cider mill is over and now I finally have a little free time to do this post at the request of a few of my friends.

I was probably the worst young professional ever when I started my first big girl job. Standard girl problem: I had nothing to wear. My college wardrobe was comprised of college t-shirts, yoga pants, club dresses and Vans. Not an easy transition to the office.

Lattice crust apple pie

October 18, 2013 Randi

Update: my mom and dad’s backyard is STILL overflowing with apples. So you guys get to witness my first attempt at making apple pie!

This is one of my mom’s go-to recipes for fall and winter dinners. She prepares the apple mix ahead of time, in multiple batches, and freezes it in Ziploc bags. (I get my make-ahead mentality from her.)

Apple chips

October 11, 2013 Randi

Bless my mother, she never seems to run out of recipes for the two Jonathan apple trees and one golden delicious apple tree in our backyard back home. Lately when I’ve come home to visit, I’ve ended up with bags of apples to take back up to my apartment with me.

One of the easiest things to do with an abundance of apples? Apple chips.

Pallet shelves and mason jar organization

October 10, 2013 Randi

Deep exhale.

The 25-page rough draft of my master’s thesis is finished and turned in after five weeks of heavy life consumption. Only two more chapters and a massive expansion of the whole thing to go! Luckily, that won’t happen until next fall. I have the rest of this semester and next semester to catch up with some electives before getting back to the core classes of my MSA program.

So! How to celebrate? Since I know none of you are interested in reading my analysis of factors that push mid-Michigan residents to shop at a cooperative grocery store, how about a pallet board and mason jar storage craft? This one was pretty easy, and cost very little. I actually created this project when I first moved into my apartment, I just hadn’t gotten around to posting it until now.

My grandma’s pumpkin pie recipe

October 4, 2013 Randi

The temperatures just keep dropping and the leaves are falling! It’s still fall and I am still loving it. To follow up last week’s recipe, my “everything fall in a squash” squash, I decided to offer you a dessert using the one ingredient I didn’t have a use for last week: pumpkin. And what better than a traditional pumpkin pie recipe? (Nothing, that’s what.)

I’m the third generation of Shaffer to use this traditional recipe. It’s been passed down from my dad’s mom to my mom, and will most certainly be passed down to my children, should I ever have them.

“Everything fall in a squash” squash

September 27, 2013 Randi

There’s almost nothing more fall than the recipe I’m about to share with you. When I say “almost,” I mean that the only fall comfort food this recipe is missing is pumpkin. It has the savory and sweet fall tastes of dried cherries, buttery acorn squash, tart apples and hearty walnuts. Hard to get more Autumn in one stuffed squash!

I’m actually pretty proud of this recipe. This is the first time I’ve made stuffing from scratch without any recipe to base my creation on, and I like to think I succeeded. (At least, my boyfriend said I did.) We used two squash to make four servings, but the stuffing will feed eight easily.

Pumpkin spice French toast

September 20, 2013 Randi

I’ve spent the past week wearing sweaters, jackets, riding boots and leggings while touring apple orchards. Fall is so fantastic! Keeping with last week’s fall food theme, this week’s recipe is a healthy(ish) version of pumpkin spice French toast!

I stumbled upon this recipe on Pinterest, and it was very easy to recreate.

Mock Starbucks pumpkin spice latte syrup

September 13, 2013 Randi

You guys. You guys. Good morning! It’s fall. Today is the first 60-degree day in mid-Michigan, so I’m kicking off a new blog feature, Food Fridays, with a seasonal favorite.

I’m sure that if you’re on Twitter, or even the Internet, you’ve seen the sassy bit, “If you say the phrase ‘pumpkin spice latte’ three times, a white girl in yoga pants will appear and tell you all her favorite things about fall.” It’s terrible, but so true. I’m not wearing yoga pants right now, but you get the gist. Fall means pumpkin spice latte season.

I had my first pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks two years ago and I hated it. It was chalky and sludgy and just not flavorful at all to me. Not to mention it’s expensive at $4.50 a pop. But then again, I’m not a huge pumpkin fan. Determined and desperate to embrace all things fall, including pumpkin, I started my mission to create my own version of the popular seasonal drink.

Wall-mounted mason jar herb gardens

August 25, 2013 Randi

In addition to upcycling and crafting, I’m also really passionate about cooking. Blame my mom- she’s a pastry chef, so I inherited my kitchen genes from her. When I started planting my plot in our community garden in the spring, I came across a neat idea online for my herbs. Since herbs are more of a last-minute need for cooking, I didn’t want to have to walk or bike four blocks away to snip some parsley for my spaghetti, so I decided to make a simple contraption for growing my herbs right in my apartment. This project includes mason jars, pallet wood and organic herbs, so what’s not to love?

Living my own (Los Angeles) story

August 20, 2013 Randi

I made it back to California!

And, of course, what else would draw me back to this state but Invisible Children.

Kind of like the first time I made it to the West Coast, this non-profit has a way of getting me to go anywhere and everywhere.

And, of course, much like my first trip to California for an Invisible Children conference, this one was extended by a few days as well.