wet day

Not a rainy day today, but wet and grey.

Fraction Magazine

I have one photograph in the fourth anniversary issue of Fraction Magazine (Issue 38).  I am joined by many other talented photographers, so please check it out.

My first save the date card.  I think that means that I'm an adult now.

Both Sides of the Lens: Self Portraiture

I have two photographs in the show Both Sides of the Lens: Self Portraiture up at the Kiernan Gallery in Arlington, VA.  They show is up from April 10th to May 6th, 2012.  Please go check it out and support a gallery run by one of my former classmates at AIB, Kat Kiernan.  You can view the images in the exhibition as well as purchase the exhibition catalogue here.

A Decline, 2007

morning from the bed

Stay tuned for regular photo updates.

instagram

I'm pretty new to the Instagram trend.  I've been admiring the yellow-tinted square pictures for quite a while, but I wasn't able to try it out until it came to the Android market.  I resisted for a long time, thinking it kind of gimmicky, but I finally succumbed since it matches my aesthetic almost perfectly.  I never want to be one of those people who completely forgoes using their actual camera and just takes cell phone pictures, but it is rather nice to always have a camera with me to catch the tiny moments, diary style.

My instagram name is kelly_burgess, feel free to follow.

meet my plants

A philodendron cutting in water and baby broccoli seedlings.

I'm not exactly known for my green thumb.  If anything, up until recently, I was known for killing anything that may at one point have been alive.  I've gone through two tropical-type plants, three pots of ivy (and yes, I know that people pay good money to have others come and kill the ivy in their yards), and a variety of other attractive plants.  I don't know what I've done wrong.

The newest addition to the family: Minty, a tiny mint plant.

But all of a sudden, my apartment has become a happy little plant haven.  I've had Phil, my resident philodendron, for over three years.  His cuttings are happily growing in pots and glasses of water.  I got more adventurous this past month and started some plants from seeds.  I had no idea what to expect, and didn't really follow any directions.  So far... baby broccoli plants!  I'm a mom!

St. Patrick's Day

I celebrated St. Patrick's day last week by bringing in cake truffles to work.  At some point, I had purchased shamrock sprinkles on a whim and figured it was probably a wise idea to put them to use, as they can only be used once a year.  I went with cake truffles this time instead of cake pops, as I find putting them on the sticks and dipping the balls of cake in the melted chocolate (hoping that they don't fall in) to be rather tedious.  Placing them in tiny truffle papers makes them look a little classier, in my opinion.  Either way, they were a big hit at work.

I started out with a vanilla/white cake base and added some green food coloring to it for a little holiday surprise.  I mixed the cake with some leftover Funfetti frosting I had in the fridge (this accounts for the multicolored specks that you see in the picture above).  Once the cake balls were formed, I put them in the fridge for a little bit to harden up.  Afterwards, I dipped each ball into some melted white chocolate.  I accidentally thinned the chocolate too much, so the green cake was sort of visible through the candy coating.  Once coated, I sprinkled with green and set them aside to harden up.

settling in

Well, you may have noticed some changes around here.  I redesigned the blog (again) because I am fickle.  I decided that having a blog dedicated to just my baking endeavors was rather limiting (as I only have time to bake so often, as noticed by my lack of updates lately), so it made sense to make a space where I could write about whatever I was working on.  Or for whatever was happening.  Or for whatever people use blogs for these days.  Life, I guess.

In my photography world, a lot has been happening.  I had an opening reception for War of the Worlds at Booklovers' Gourmet in Webster, MA on Saturday afternoon.  That show will be on display until the end of the month, so please go check it out, buy some books, and have some snacks if you are in the area (55 East Main Street in Webster, MA).  On Saturday evening (it was a busy day), I was lucky enough to participate - along with many other talented artists - in the ALL VISUAL Boston slideshow event at Spectacle in Jamaica Plain.  It was a very cool space filled with very cool people.  I am looking forward to another event coming up this summer.

I also found out that one of my photographs from Notes on Change was selected to be exhibited in the Behind the Lens show coming up at the Keirnan Gallery in Virginia.  I've never shipped any prints anywhere to be shown, so this will be a new experience and something different for me to fret over.  I have some other things brewing in the background that I'm very excited about, but don't want to spill the beans about yet.  Suspense.

Super Bowl bean dip

This recipe is really something that I only find myself making once a year, if that.  I really like this dip, but it only ever gets made when I go to Super Bowl parties.  I don't know if it is because it was during a Super Bowl that I first encountered it, or if even I can't convince myself that dip is an acceptable meal replacement.  Nevertheless, I made some this past Sunday to bring with me to a gathering at a friend's house.  It disappeared almost immediately with rave reviews.

Apologies for the gross cell phone picture.  I put off making the dip until the last minute and subsequently rushed around.  I missed kick-off.

Super Bowl Bean Dip

• 8oz cream cheese
• 1 can of refried beans
• 1 jar of salsa
• bag of shredded cheese (I use "Mexican Blend")

1. Preheat oven to 350.  In a 9x13 glass pan, spread cream cheese over the entire bottom until even and smooth.

2. Drain can of refried beans and spread over cream cheese in the pan.

3. Over beans, pour and spread salsa.

4. Sprinkle shredded cheese over salsa and place in the oven.

5. Heat until the cheese has melted and the dip is warm throughout.  Serve with tortilla chips.