Skates

Ok, my skates are actually old news now. Starting the hunt for a new pair this week.

Pumpkin patches.

It's a secret no one knows

But I'll let the secret out. I jammed to this in the car today. While sitting in the driveway.

Sriracha Mac

So I made an amazing Mac and Cheese for our BBQ in Oxford. I've been asked multiple times for the recipe. Too bad I didn't use one. So for the BBQ this past Labor Day Weekend I attempted to recreate it.

-Boil water and cook pasta of choice.

-Melt 8 Tablespoons of butter in a sauce pan.

-Wisk in 6 Tbs. of flour. Let bubble for 1-2 min.

-Slowly add in 5 cups of warm milk wisking constantly to prevent clumping.

-Bring mixture to a simmer. It will thicken slightly.

-Turn off heat and add 6 cups of cheese.*

-Add in 1/4 cup of Sriracha.**

-Layer baking dish with half the past, 2 cups of cheese, and finish with the remaining pasta.

-Pour cheese mixture over pasta.

-Top with broken up Sweet Thai Chili potato chips (I used Kettle).

*Mac and Cheese is all about the cheese. What made this Mac so good in the UK was the use of red gloucester cheese. Just look at the name. It's very British and thus expensive in the US. I used 4 cups sharp cheddar (the most flavorful cheese available in the pre-shredded bags) and 2 cups monterey jack in this weekends version. They just didn't hold a candle to the cheeses used in the original version. The best macs mix about 4 cups of sharp cheddar with 2 cups of another strong cheese. Asiago and Fontina are my favorite to include.

**In the original version I just squirted in Sriracha until the color looked good. Scientific right? I used a 1/3 for Labor Day but it ended up with some actual heat instead of a slight addition of spicy goodness. Actual amount can be lessened or increased depending on personal preferences.

Pictures

Yeah, I'm bad at blogging. Enjoy some pictures
Cambridge bathroom. At least I think it was a Cambridge bathroom.

Biking in Cambridge was awesome. Much better than biking in Bloomington where its both hot and hilly.

My new SPEA crowd. I HAVE SPEA PEOPLE YAY!

Blue sign says to note climb on this. I didn't notice. Obviously. Pretend I'm standing below the bottom of the Thames and I'd be in the Thames Barrier.

Big Ben. Awesome.

England

So I've been in England not quite a month so far and, if you haven't figured out, have been both lazy and busy with school work. But not so lazy and busy that I shouldn't have been sharing some of the amazing things we've done so far. The speaker list is amazing for this program (IU at Oxford) and we've had a lot of fun so far.
We spent a few days in Bath England as seen here in a photo of the Roman Baths. Just makes a girl want a massage and a hot tub. Near Bath is...

Tada! Stonehenge. The worlds largest henge (though Wikipedia disagrees). We got an inside the rope fence tour. At sunset. Pretty awesome. And filled with sex jokes.

We hit Cambridge for a few days in order to hear some speakers. 8 hours worth of speakers. Please note- U-shaped table arrangements are not cool. They make your neck hurt. In our free time 11 of us rented bikes and went cruising through some fields before having tea. Tea meaning lunch and scones but tea sounds better. And more English.


Found this in London.
We hit London Friday for another 8 hour round of lectures at the London School of Economics. I didn't do much as we have a lot work to do for next week. I did however manage to get sassy with Big Ben.

As most of you know, I turned 24 the other day. We had midterms but luckily they finished at five. A large number of us headed into Oxford for happy hour, dinner, and some fun.

Pics from Oxford

Punting on the River Cherwell.
Trashing of an Oxford student. This means they've just finished their last exam (ever) and it's time to celebrate.
Oxford University Church.
Common land just outside Oxford.
Goat.
St. Margarette's church Oxford. I think.

The Radcliffe Camera.