Amazement with the sheer deliciousness of vodka-soaked olives

What a day! It was wonderful!! I met some great people and had lovely conversations about food, lifestyles, veganism, frustration about food choices at grocery stores, and just some general good convo with good people. But what an amazingly exhausting day! I guess the stress of the past few days of organizing everything and arranging everything and baking everything, it finally caught up with me! So, I drove myself home in an empty Sadie...still smelling like a car jar ;), walked in the door and made a martini (please note, this is where the title of this blog is explained)...I made an extra dry martini with 3 olives...sat down on the couch and soaked in the silence and comfort of doing absolutely nothing....except for exerting the effort of swirling the olives in my martini glass. All I could do at this point is watch the olives swirl around the glass and anticipate their sheer deliciousness...I couldn't think about anything else...anything at all! My brain was like a mushed pumpkin chocolate chip cupcake, which were by the way quite the hit today! I am utterly exhausted! The last time I felt this exhausted and exhilarated at the same time was when I finished my comps for grad school...when the committee came back and said I passed...same exact feeling...like I had only the energy for twirling olives in a martini glass with great jubilation!
So...I did it all...and all the while maintained my mantra from the last blog...make whoopie at all costs! Now to bed...after of course, another martini!

It's here!!!!!

Ahhh...that no good son-of-a-bitch didn't wake me up this morning! My lovely alarm did....a good sign that I was happily in dreamland...not dreaming about vegan goodies, may I add!! And not subconsciously thinking about baking (subconsciously thinking....is that possible???). I wrapped everything up last night around 10:30. I had the house to myself - I had my iTunes baking mix blaring, with the likes of fine musicians including Lil Wayne, Black Eyed Peas, QTip, FloRida. What would I do without these ingenious masters of musical waves? They, afterall, provide me the energy to bake, package, run out to Sadie (for those of you not in the know, my car), dash back in to the sound of the oven alarm, check the frosting in the mixer, frost more cupcakes, package them, run out to Sadie, and so on. Meanwhile, I dance around the kitchen...who knew a gal could have so much fun Friday night shaking her hips while frosting cupcakes! So, 10:30 came and I was done! Sadie was loaded with baked goods....an all natural Yankee Candle Car Jar, sans the $5.00 to Yankee. What a feeling! As I stood below the moonlit sky having ceased my loop of kitchen-car-kitchen-car, the chill caught up with me. It didn't matter...the sight of Sadie packed to the gills with vegan goodies that I made, and that I packaged, 8 years of plans and work were staring back at me and my goosebump laden arms. What a feeling! I couldn't believe that I did all of that! Which brings me to reveal a secret about myself (of which those of you who are close to me are sadly aware)....I am a stubborn Sicilian Irish gal! This entire HTG empire :) ...everything starting from 8 years ago...I have done. As much as I love everyone around me - friends and family - who offer to help with odds and ends - I want to do it all on my own. I am very stubborn when it comes to matters of me doing something by myself and having that sense of satisfaction. And with that, my staring at Sadie last night returned the emotions of those eight years, and more soberly, those of the past 3 days and nights of preparation! It was an amazing feeling. I actually did it! So...I've done my part...now it just has to take off....

Whoopie Anyone?

Whoopie...what a complicated and at the same time exciting word! At HTG, we LOVE making whoopie...and believe ours is the best in town! I, as proprietor and baker, have never been known to pass up whoopie...until last night (unless, of course, it's not vegan)! I had, what we will diagnose here, as a brief spout of baker's remorse. What did I get myself into? This is too much...day job then home to bake - for 6+ hours until AT LEAST midnight, then back at it with that son-of-a-bitch Dunkin Donuts guy again calling in my sleep...'time to make the donuts', 'time to make the donuts', 'time to make the donuts'....until I feel like clobbering him with donut holes and finally decide to roll out of bed at the bewitching hour of 4am. What did I get myself into??? Yes, this is my dream...and I knew it wouldn't be easy...but this is overwhelming! So, last night after baking 6 batches of cookies, 144 cupcakes and 72 muffins AFTER a super stressful day of work, I was exhausted. Not only due to baker's remorse but a sore back because I didn't have time to go to the gym and stretch. So, at midnight while muffins were baking, I did yoga...which made me feel better as each vertebrae crack sounded like a mini bomb exploded in my body.

So on to whoopie...all evening I was thinking 'how am I going to have time to make whoopie pies'? I still have to frost 600 cupcakes and package them Friday evening'???? So, I concluded (after one glass of wine) that I was not going to make whoopie. WHAT?!?!? NOT MAKE WHOOPIE???? What the hell has gotten into me? My whoopie is the best around - how can I deny people this great confection? I decided to go to bed mad at myself but coming up with the idea of having a whole day of whoopie at David's before Christmas, so it's ok. After a restorative 4-hour sleep and that SOB waking me up, my confidence in and desire for whoopie has returned. And here, at 6:18 a.m. four batches of the taste-bud delight are cooling and awaiting their thick, creamy, sweet filling.

What has whoopie taught me you may ask? Not to give up...I have to push myself through this and make Saturday a success! I have 8 years of planning, hard work, baking, and dreams backing me. Not to mention the huge carbon footprint I'm managed to rack up with all of this baking - I can't fold now!

So, until tomorrow...bake away and make whoopie...at all costs!!!

We pay homage to you great whoopie!

Mad Muffins

Well...with a flurry of activity and stress already present comes a rush to get 300 muffins, 300 cupcakes, 108 cookies, 54 whoopie pies, 60 brownies and 5 bags of dog treats baked, packaged, labeled, and delivered for Saturday mornings big Honest to Goodness kickoff! Since I learned that David's Natural Market in Bel Air, MD will be carrying my products, it's been a rush to get everything in place. A rush that has been long-awaited. For the past 8 years I've grown HTG. It truly is my little vegan baby. I've developed recipes, designed the website, searched for the perfect packaging, built excel formula after excel formula to figure how much exactly these vegan goodies will pay off, designed labels, t-shirts, and yes, even panties! Cause who wouldn't want a pair of panties that says 'vegans taste better'?!? Even if you're not a vegan...these are quite the fashion accessory! (And may I add are guaranteed to result in a lucky night if your partner is curious) :) I've tasted samples out the gazzoo...and apologize to all friends and family to whom I have forced my vegan goodies upon and interrogated for their opinion. And God forbid someone tell me something is good. 'What'???? I say...'What about texture, smell, consistency, does it taste better then Little Debbie, if you were about to die would you want one last bite of that vegan maple cupcake??' questions like this were posed to my sweet guinea pigs...and answers I expected! So...here we are, 2 baking days left until the big day!! I baked last night until midnight, awoke this morning (to the face of the Dunkin Donuts guy saying 'time to make the donuts') at 4:30 and baked 12 batches of muffins. And here it is, 7:49 am - and I have to run and get ready for my 'day' job! Big meeting today in NJ...plan to come home and bake more. Super busy but this is 8 years of my life's passion and work all coming together - like a fine cupcake batter! Keep you posted with today's success!