The Office Party

One of my favorite college traditions my roommate and I have created is our Thursday night Office party. We are both avid watchers of the NBC show The Office, and have many friends who share our passion for the hilarious show. In the fall, we decided to invite these friends over to watch the show with us on the night of the season premiere. We ended up having about 20 people over watching it with us. We have dvr and recorded the show and our friends were very grateful not to have to watch commercials.

Each week since then, we just told people to meet at our house to watch it about an hour after it actually airs on television, and every week people show up to do so. Some weeks some people can't come or are busy, but we have a solid group following.

Some weeks we prepare extra food if we know a large group will be there, and other weeks we just see what's in the pantry and bring it out, such a cookies or popcorn or a bag of chips.

Find a television show that you and your friends all watch, and rather than watching it all as individuals, watch it together! Its a great way to keep in touch and hang out with friends. With a weekly date on the calendar, you know exactly when you'll get to hang out. Shows like Lost, 24 or even The Bachelor are great to do this with too because you always want to speculate about the outcomes or theorize about episodes to come.

The Art of the Chocolate Chip Cookie

Its a classic, yet tricky treat. There are many recipes and many variations, but I believe I may have mastered the art of the chocolate chip cookie.

It may sound like cheating, but step one of this project involves buying the big plastic tub of Nestle's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough at the grocery store. The tub is great because you can reseal it, so you can make as many or as few cookies at a time.

Spray a bit of Pam or Bakers Joy on your cookie sheet, despite the directions on the tub saying an "ungreased" cookie sheet. Take spoon fulls of the dough and roll them around in your hand until they are perfect spheres. Place them on the cookie sheet about two inches apart.

Put them in the oven at 325 degrees for about 12-14 minutes. This time depends on your oven though, so on your first batch, stick around the oven and check on them after about 11 minutes.

The key to perfect chocolate chip cookies is all in the amount of time they cook for. You need to pull them out of the oven just as they are starting to turn a golden brown. Then leave them on the cookie sheet to cool for 5-10 minutes.

When cooled, enjoy!

These cookies are the quickest and most perfect way to keep hungry guests appeased! I tend to keep a tub of dough in the refrigerator at all times! You never know who might drop by unexpectedly!