Dear Linds,

Of course you must unpack immediately.  I've always given my apartments a good cleaning during finals week, so it seems perfectly reasonable that you should have to unpack a house in anticipation of your orals.  If you need any home organization ideas, you might want to check out Ikea Hacker.  There are a number of why-would-you-waste-your-time-on-that projects, but there are some real gems as well.

I'm eager to try out Martha's recipe - with salt.  But I'm still on the fence about recipes that call for a sprinkling prior to baking.  Although the crystalline bits enhance the flavor and make you feel just the right amount of pretentious, I don't know if I like it.  Last week, for instance, I made some crisp oatmeal cookies and sprinkled half the batch with sea salt before putting them in the oven.  While the shiny little crystals were pretty appealing (I mean, who doesn't like sparkles?), I forgot to pay attention to the butter and oats.   That is, I was eating the cookies for the salt. . .  

Now I need a bit of advice.  I am going to a friend/former boss/current co-worker's home for dinner this week, and I'd like to bring something.  He's a bit of a wine aficionado, so I'd prefer to bake instead.  What is a safe, but impressive crowd pleaser for a family of foodies??

I miss you.

Love,

Meg