Week #4- Marcus (and the banana bread)

The crummy weather we've been having this spring has been unpleasant for everyone in one way or another.  But the people who probably feel the affects more than most are Chicago's homeless.  Although I couldn't tell you exactly where, I assume most try to seek out some sort of shelter when it's cold and rainy, and therefore on days like today it's a bit harder to meet someone for the Give and Bake Project.  But I didn't get up at 6:00 this morning to bake banana bread for nothing- I'm into this project and for the moment going to adopt the motto of the postal service.  Neither rain nor sleet nor... some other weather condition that I can't remember off the top of my head is going to prevent me from carrying out my mission for the week.

I was determined to find someone in need today, so I started heading toward the Loop where there tends to be the highest concentration of people at 5:00 in the evening.  While passing the Cosi on Wabash and Lake, I noticed a man who looked around the age of 30.  He seemed relatively put together- he had nice enough clothes on, a nice backpack, and just didn't fit the profile of most of the truly homeless people I come across.  Yet he had a cup and was asking people for change.  I see this every now and then- people who really don't seem like they'd be homeless but they are begging people for money.  My immediate reaction is to be a bit judgmental and skeptical, but that's what I'm trying to rid myself of by doing this project.  So before making a decision about this person, I thought it would only be fair to hear his story first.  After all, you would probably have to be in a bit of a dire situation if you are willing to stand on the sidewalk and ask complete strangers for loose change in 40 degrees and rain.

I started off by (politely) getting straight to the point- what was he planning to do with the money he collects?  He said he spends most of the money he collects either on food or train passes to get to and from work.  Well, if he has a job, then why does he need to collect change?  He explained that he has a part-time job right now detailing cars, but he works mostly for tips, and because it's been so rainy, most people haven't exactly been jumping in line to spruce up their cars.  All right, makes sense.

I didn't want to come straight out and ask this guy if he was homeless.  But I was still curious- what would put him in a situation where he has to resort to asking strangers for help?  So I instead asked him if he lived nearby.  He said that for the past three weeks he has been staying at the homeless shelter in Oak Park.  Prior to that, he made some less-than-stellar decisions that resulted in him being out of a home.  He moved in with someone and didn't think to do any research or sign anything.  He paid this person first and last months rent- really everything he had at the moment.  One day he came home to find a pink eviction notice on his door.  It turned out his roommate hadn't been paying the rent at all, but instead had been pocketing his money. 

I eventually introduced myself and learned his name was Marcus.  I told him I didn't have any money for him, but I did have some homemade banana bread.  While Marcus may not have had the typical profile of the people I aim to meet with this project, that doesn't make him any less worthy of empathy.  Who of us hasn't made bad decisions- perhaps even bad roommate decisions?  Marcus recently interviewed for a line cook position with Famous Dave's, and if he gets it, plans to start saving for a studio of his own.  I hope he lands his new gig and that it won't be long before he looks back at this (hopefully short) time in his life as a learning experience and turning point.  We all mistakes- it's what we do next and how we recover that counts the most.



Banana Bread
- 1 1/2 c flour
- 3/4 c sugar
- 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 egg whites (or 1/4 c liquid egg whites)
- 2 extremely ripe bananas, mashed
- 1/4 c applesauce

Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.  Add egg whites, bananas, and applesauce.  Stir until JUST combined.  Pour into greased loaf pans.  I use 3 mini loaves and bake on 350 for about 20 minutes. 

I tend to over-optimistically grocery shop.  I always buy a ton of fruits and vegetables and then don't eat it all in time.  At least bananas can be salvaged by baking.  But the problem is that baking can kind of negate the good intentions of buying the fruits and veggies in the first place.  As you may have noticed with the ingredients, this recipe is pretty low fat (but not low on yummy-ness) and therefore you get to skip the guilt!  I would not, however, try to take it one step further and substitute Splenda or whole-wheat flour.  Learned that the hard way. 

Another side note- I find this bread to be better after sitting in a Ziploc bag overnight.  But then again I like my baked goods more on the moist side; all a matter of personal preference really. 

Week #3- Ted (and the peanut butter cream cheese brownies)

The homeless and financially troubled people who I encounter are pretty savvy- they tend to choose spots crowded with either tourists, shoppers, or evening commuters.  And by being two of those three tonight, I met Ted. 

Walking down Randolph after work on my way to hit up the State Street shops, I noticed Ted standing underneath the Wabash Street El stop.  At first I wondered why he was standing; most people I come across in this situation tend to be sitting down.  After all, they usually have long days and it's tough to be on your feet for that amount of time.  But as I got close, I noticed he was hunched over and supported by a cane.  I was very curious to hear Ted's story.

After introducing myself, I apologized that I didn't have any change for the styrofoam cup he was extending, but told him I did have some brownies for him.  I was delighted by his reaction.  "I LOVE brownies!" he exclaimed with a bright smile.  I knew then that I had picked the right new friend for the day.  I asked Ted what his story was.  He told me he has a crooked back and is waiting for Supplemental Security to come in so that he can afford surgery.  As someone with severe scoliosis who needed surgery as well, I completely sympathize with him.  It also makes me feel very lucky and blessed that I had the means to correct my scoliosis at the age of 13.  Severe back issues certainly progress with age, and it's unfortunate that Ted's progressed to the point where he was no longer able to do his job performing maintenance and subsequently lost both his income and a means to provide for himself.

On the bright side, unlike the other friends I've met so far through the Give and Bake Project, Ted has a supportive family here in Chicago.  He may be out of his own home temporarily, but he stays with his brother three nights a week and his sister the other four.  He rotates because he is worried about becoming a burden to either of them.  During the daytime, he tries to collect change so he can support himself in some small way while he waits to fully get back on his own feet again.

Ted is planning for his Supplemental Security Income to kick in within the next month, and after that he will begin to search for a qualified doctor to fix his back.  I asked him if he plans to go back to maintenance work after he is healed.  I was so impressed to hear that Ted has even bigger goals.  "I'm going to start my own business! I'm really good at plumbing, painting, fixing things- I'm a great handyman!" A warm smile came across his face as he shared with me the inspiration for his plan. "I learned from my dad.  He owned six buildings and taught me how to do everything I know." 

Although I didn't ask him his age, Ted looks to be in his mid to late 50s.  It's so incredibly inspiring that despite his age, he still has big plans and goals for himself.  I think there is a great deal to be learned from my new friend: no matter your age or hardships you may be faced with, never stop chasing your dreams.



Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Brownies
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 2 1/4 cups white sugar
- 3/4 cup butter (melted)
- 4 eggs
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 2 tbsp milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt

In a medium sized bowl, beat the cream cheese, peanut butter, 1/4 cup sugar, milk, and 1 egg until smooth.

In a large bowl, mix melted butter, 2 cups of sugar, and vanilla. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. (This batter comes out quite thick, but don't worry, you're doing it right.)

Technically, these brownies are supposed to be marbled, but I fudged this step up.  If you want to make your brownies all marbley and pretty, here's what you do.  Grease a 9x13 pan.  Set aside one cup of the cocoa mixture (this is the step I skipped), and spread the rest of the cocoa mixture into the pan.  Pour the peanut butter mixture next, and then the remaining chocolate mixture.  Take a butter knife and drag it through the batter, back and forth each way across the pan until a marbled affect takes place.

Bake the brownies on 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean (will depend on your oven).  I have to say, I've always been a huge advocate of boxed brownies and never saw a need to make brownies from scratch.  But surprisingly, as much as I love my friends Pillsbury and Duncan Hines, I think these are even better!

Week #2- John (and the peanut butter oatmeal cookies)

First off, I just want to thank those of you who reached out with such kind words over the past week.  I wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in reading, but planned to keep this project up regardless.  I've been so pleasantly surprised by the response I've received!  Your sweet words of support make me even more excited and motivated to continue The Give and Bake Project.

Today I met a friend for lunch in River North, and armed with a bag full of peanut butter oatmeal cookies, thought I'd take the long route back along Michigan Avenue.  It's a cold and biting day here in Chicago, so at first there didn't appear to be any homeless people seeking help along the avenue.  As I crossed the over the Chicago River and neared my place of work, I decided that I may just have to put my project on pause for the afternoon and look again tomorrow.  Right then I noticed John huddled up in a nook at the base of a Michigan Avenue bridge watchtower.

I crossed the street, offered him the cookies, and introduced myself.  I told him it was nice to meet him, and he very curteously replied "the pleasure is all mine."  He explained that the Michigan Ave. bridge is his spot of choice during the day, and while it sometimes it can be a good place to collect change from passing tourists and businesspeople, today he hasn't been too lucky so far.  Perhaps there is time in the day for his luck to turn around, for right after he said that, a sweet little girl walked up to him and dropped a handful of change into his cup.

I pointed out that he was smart to pick out the spot nestled in one of the watchtowers, as it seemed to be relatively shieded from the wind whipping down the river.  He agreed, but said that he was still quite cold.  On nights like this when conditions are less than ideal for sleeping outdoors, he tries to stay at the housing shelter in the Loop.  When he doesn't have the cash for that, he'll hop on a train and ride it end to end until morning.

John is originally from Arkansas, but moved up here about a year ago for a job in construction.  After three months of working, the company lost funding for the project, and John found himself out of work and therefore out of income.  Since then he has worked odd jobs here and there, mostly as a dishwasher, but they generally didn't last long.  He's had a few apartments, but his income hasn't allowed him to keep up with his rent, putting him in what seems to be the all-too-common cycle of homelessness in Chicago.

John's family is all still down in Arkansas, and he hopes to relocate back there soon.  His hold-up is that he doesn't have the funds; most of the cash he does find himself with is spent on food or a night of warmth at the shelter.  I did get the sense that there may be more to his story- perhaps he hasn't returned to Arkansas yet because he is worried he let his family down?- but I certainly didn't want to pry.  However, I did chat with him enough to gather that he has clearly hit a rough patch in his life.  All I can do is hope that, like the point in our conversation where the little girl tossed him her contribution and well wishes, John will soon reach a point where things turn around for him.  I hope that when that happens, he makes his way back home for his family to welcome him with open arms.




Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
(Side note- this recipe yields four dozen but can easily be halved)
-1/2 cup shortening
-1/2 cup butter (softened)
-1 cup packed brown sugar
-3/4 cup white sugar
-1 cup peanut butter (creamy or chunky- take your pick!)
-2 eggs
-1 1/2 cups flour
-2 tsp baking soda
-1 tsp salt
-1 cup quick-cooking oats

Cream together shortening, butter, both sugars, and peanut butter until smooth.
Beat in eggs, one at a time.
Mix in flour, baking soda, and salt.
Stir in oats until just combined.
Drop onto ungreased cookie sheets.
The original recipe calls for baking 10-15 minutes on 350, but it really depends on your baking sheets and your oven.  I bake mine for 8 minutes, then let them sit for a few minutes before taking them off the sheets.  The result is a slightly crisp but still soft and chewy treat that will hold up for days in an airtight container.

Two Christmases ago, my former roommates and I had just finished infusing our apartment with the holiday spirit.  With the sound of Christmas carols in the air and the twinkling of our tree lights, all we were missing was the smell of cookies baking in the oven.  So we took an inventory of our baking supplies and chose peanut butter as the theme.  We did a quick search on http://www.allrecipes.com/ and chose this one.  It's easy to make, always turns out yummy, and as result has been added to my recipe box as one of my favorites to bake and share.

Credit: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Oatmeal-Peanut-Butter-Cookies/Detail.aspx

Week #1- Willy (and the pumpkin chocolate chip cookies)

Like I often do after my work day ends, tonight I stopped by Bockwinkel's on Stetson and South Water to grab some ingredients for dinner.  But tonight instead of exiting the doors and ignoring the man who always sits outside, I strode up to him and gave him a bag of cookies.  He smiled brightly, thanked me, and tucked them in his coat.  Okay, I have to admit I was kind of hoping he'd tear into them right away and tell me how amazing they are and how I'm the best baker in the world.  But seeing as his entire pantry of food consisted of some leftover soup and a Pepsi that another Bockwinkel's patron had dropped off earlier in the day, I suppose it made sense for him to ration the cookies. That, or maybe he just doesn't believe in eating pumpkin in the springtime.  We may never know.

I then sat down on the cold concrete next to him and thought about what it must have been like to sit there all day long.  I can see his spot outside the grocery store from my office window, and each time I looked outside on this unusually cold and foggy April day, I saw him curled up on the ground.  I introduced myself and asked him his name.  He said his name was Willy, and immediately launched into an almost apologetic explanation of why he wasn't at the homeless shelter.  "I try to sleep there one or two nights a week when I have the $20 cash, but the place is just so full of bed bugs and I hate having the bites all over me for days."  I certainly don't blame him!  He said the other nights of the week when it's too cold to sleep outside, he heads to one of the nearby hospitals, where the security guards generally don't kick him out until around 5 a.m. I wondered how he had become homeless to begin with, and he said he shared an apartment with his brother up until about five years ago.  His brother had contracted AIDS from a random hook-up and unfortunately passed away, leaving Willy broke and out on the streets.  He had eight brothers and four sisters, but four other brothers were killed in gang violence several years ago.  He no longer has any contact with any of his remaining family members, not even during the holidays, although they all reside on the south side of Chicago. 

I asked Willy about a job.  He said years and years ago (he is now 52, but I have to say has aged remarkably well despite his circumstances) he used to work for a furniture company near McCormick Place, but he became an alcoholic and lost the job.  Although he hasn't had a drink since, he said he has a hard time finding work now because every place requires you to have a phone, or at the very least a permanent address.

While Willy and I were chatting on this somewhat busy street corner, several people passed us.  One woman walked by with a small white dog, and she waved hello to Willy.  He said he sees her every day.  Not many people take the time to talk to him, but he said he always watches out for the ones who do.  "Nobody will ever be messing with my people.  If they try, they'll learn real quick they came to the wrong place!"  Willy certainly seems to have had a hard go at life, but it's nice to know that through it all, his heart is still in the right place.

I enjoyed chatting with Willy, and as he's usually camped out along one of my routes home from work, I'm sure I'll chat with him again sometime.  All in all I would also consider this a successful first week, and I hope to continue The Give and Bake Project by meeting other homeless people in my area.  I would like to incorporate more photos, but for some reason I would have felt like a creeper just asking Willy for his photo for my blog- maybe I'll delusionaly convince myself that I'm not a weirdo by next week and take some next time.

Until then, I'm hoping the rain holds out for my new friend, and that he falls asleep tonight with a happy and full tummy. :)




Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- 1 (18.5 oz) box of spice cake mix
- 1 (15 oz) can of pumpkin
Simply mix these two ingredients together.  At first it will seem like the mix is too dry and that it won't blend, but trust me, it will.  Feel free to add raisins, nuts, or any other mix you love (my favorite is chocolate chips!).  Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet (heads up- these cookies don't spread.  However they are dropped is how they will come out!).  Bake on 350 for about 15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Try not to overbake, but if by chance you do, seal in a ziploc bag overnight and they'll come out soft and moist in the morning! These are really more like muffin tops than cookies, but regardless, they are a delicious treat that couldn't possibly be any easier!  Yums!

Inception!

Hello and welcome to my blog!  I'm so excited you're here.

First off, I should explain how this idea came to be.  Anyone who knows me well knows I always have a ton of energy and am continually looking for a new project or adventure.  Lately I've been itching to find something new to take on.  But what?  There are so many things I love to do, it's hard to decide!

One of my favorite things to do is bake.  Trouble is, if I ate everything I baked, I believe I'd literally turn into a giant cupcake. So sometimes I bake and then end up tossing it (not going to lie, there has been a time or two where I've contemplated pulling a Miranda from Sex and the City and covering it with dish soap).  Now just because I love to bake, doesn't necessarily mean I'm exceptional at it.  So sometimes it's honestly probably worth tossing.  But there are times when it seems like a waste. 

Now for part two.  I also really love people.  Helping people, chatting with people, getting to know people, etc.  And because I live in the wonderful and vast city of Chicago, there are a lot of people to get to know.  Chicago is "home" to nearly three million people, but as any one of us who ventures out of our homes on a daily basis can attest, there are many men, women, and children in this city who don't actually have a place to call home.  In fact, according to http://www.chicagohomeless.org/, nearly 90,000 Chicagoans are homeless.  Each time I walk by a homeless person downtown, I always wonder about his or her story.  Despite my curiosity, I am guilty of never actually sitting down and hearing anyone's story.  I was born exceptionally blessed.  I have a wonderful family, was able to get a college education, and have a great job that allows me to lead a comparatively privileged life.  Unfortunately not everyone has been so lucky, and sometimes it really isn't fair.  While I alone cannot make a big impact or change in that, maybe I can at least make a very small one.

So, I'm going to marry parts one and two.  Once a week, I'm going to bake something and bring it to a local homeless person.  I'm going to sit down and get to know this person, hear his or her story, and learn how this person found himself or herself in such an unfortunate situation.  Through this journey, maybe I can gain a better overall understanding of the homelessness in our city, and maybe eventually identify a bigger way to help.  But for now, I'll be grateful if I can make some new friends and if I can help some people have a better day with cookies or cupcakes. :)

And the last part- blogging!  I have a long and very random list of things I want to do in my life.  Some are very obscure, like hugging a panda bear (they just look so soft and snuggly!).  Some are slightly more normal, like writing a blog.  And although I may not be any good at it, I love to write.  In fact, so much that I once wanted to become a reporter, until I moved to New York and got laughed out of a job interview for my complete lack of political knowledge- whoops!  My delay was that I never had anything to start a blog about.  But I have noticed that whenever I write about baking on facebook, people always want to hear the recipes, so maybe some will tune in for that.  And I'm sure I'm not the only one who's walked past someone on the sidewalk and wondered what path led them there, so maybe some others will be interested in reading about that.  Or not.  Either way, I'm excited to begin this journey.  Any way I am able to expand my horizons, whether it's something as insignificant as mastering the chocolate chip cookie or something as significant as gaining a better understanding of humanity, I'm going to consider a success!

Project Give and Bake officially begins tomorrow.  I'm going to start with my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies.  It's a recipe I've already "mastered," as much as you can really "master" a recipe that only has three ingredients!  As for my future friend, I think I'm going to start with the fella who always sits outside of Bockwinkel's on Stetson and South Water.  He's there almost every time I walk by, and while I have bought him bread and peanut butter on occasion, I've never actually made the effort to talk to him.  So I think I'm due! 

I'm super interested to see how this project works out and I hope you are too.  Thanks for reading and stay tuned!