P.E.P. Talk - August 2023

Welcome to August
Staycations are an amazing way to step back from the craziness of your everyday life without having to deal with the stress
that comes along with travel.

Staycations have become popular and mainstream.
They can be cost effective, productive and leave you just as
relaxed (or more) than a vacation.

From staying at a hotel for a night or two in your hometown to plotting out special activities you usually wouldn’t do at home, like a full-blown spa day, it’s really just a break from your typical schedule.

I hope everyone takes the time to look through all of the information included in this month's P.E.P. Talk and use it to help take better care of you!

I look forward to hearing from you. - Erin

Plotting Out the Perfect Staycation in 2023

Why a Staycation Is Better Than a Vacation

Saves money: Instead of booking a vacation where you need to arrange travel and a hotel and cover all your food costs, you can easily experience a special weekend from the comfort of your home, without having to pay any gratuity charges!

No packing bags: Forget about overpacking, or worse, under packing. When you’re making the most of your time at home, you don’t need to pull out those suitcases. This also means that you can eat a fancy meal from the comfort of your everyday sweatpants and no one will hassle you about the dress code. Pajamas all weekend? Sign me up!

Flexibility: Ditch the 6 a.m. wake-up call to get on the road to beat traffic or get to the airport. When you’re indulging in a staycation, you make all the rules — what time you eat, where you go and when.

No travel: Traveling takes a lot of time, and it is always a pain getting to and from your destination. Avoid all the frustration and headaches and spend more time doing what you actually want to do.

Hometown giveback: Now more than ever, it’s important to be putting our money back into our communities. Explore your area and support local small businesses. From small shops to restaurants, you can help put money in your neighbors’ pockets while trying out something
you might not have experienced before.

What Do I Do?

A staycation can be anything from simply taking a break from your busy life and relaxing at home to filling your day with activities that you wouldn’t normally do in your hometown or city. Whatever it may be, make your staycation
feel special by stepping outside of your normal routine
and trying something that excites you.

Take a Virtual Cooking Class

Put on your best chef hat and learn how to whip up a new meal. If you’ve never done it, try taking a pasta-making or sushi-making class. Really, if it’s something you wouldn’t typically make, it’ll be fun to learn a new skill in the kitchen.

Create a Spa Day at Home

The next best thing to having a relaxing day at the spa is doing it from the comfort of your own home. If you’re going to do it, go all out. Get a fancy robe, light some relaxing candles, put on a spa playlist from Spotify, and get your treatments ready to go. Anything from a long relaxing bath with oils to an at-home facial with masks and creams will have you feeling as refreshed as a full day at the spa, without the outrageous price tag.

Try Out a New Restaurant Near You

If you’re not comfortable dining out, or if it’s not available in your area, that’s OK! This is a great opportunity to support a local small business and try something new at the same time. Grab a table or pick up the phone and place a takeout order with a restaurant you’ve never tried before. Hot tip: Instead of using delivery apps, call restaurants directly so they’ll receive full profits rather than having to give a cut to a delivery service.

Read a Vacation Book

You might not be able to head to the beach right now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t pour yourself a refreshing drink and indulge in a page-turning travel book. If your reading list has been growing longer, now is the time to knock a book or two off your list.

Have a Couch Marathon

If your normal routine consists of tons of running around, relaxing on the couch could easily be the easiest staycation you’ve ever taken. If you haven’t already conquered your list of show and movie binges, now is the time for lounging. Make sure your marathon has the right ingredients — blankets, pillows, popcorn, comfy clothes, and your favorite pizzeria on speed dial.

Get Outside

When your days consist of working from home, getting outside for some fresh air is a great change of scenery. If you live in an area with hiking, tackle a new trail that you’ve never tried before. If you’re in a city or area without trails, try walking around a new neighborhood to explore new territory.

Try a New Exercise Class

If you’ve always wanted to try Pilates or a dance class but never made time to go to the studio, now is the time. Get your blood pumping and try a new workout class. With tons of at-home workouts, you can try something you might have been too nervous to try in person or a class that isn’t available in your area.

Tackle a DIY Project

If you find yourself watching TikTok hacks throughout the week, wishing you could transform your boring kitchen table into a cool spray foam table, now is the time. Tackling a project you’ve been wanting to do not only is a fun activity, but you’ll feel a huge sense of reward at the end of your staycation.

COMPOST COOKIE®

Ingredients

(16 tablespoons) butter at room temperature

(1 cup) granulated sugar

(2⁄3 cup tightly packed) light brown sugar

(2 tbs) glucose

1 egg

(1/2 tsp) vanilla extract

(1 1/3 cups) flour

(1/2 tsp) baking powder

(1/4 tsp) baking soda

(1 tsp) kosher salt

(3/4 cup) mini chocolate chips

(1/2 cup) mini butterscotch chips

recipe (1/2 cup) graham crust

(1/3 cup) old-fashioned rolled oats

(2 1/2 tsp) ground coffee

(2 cups) potato chips

(1 cup) mini pretzels

Directions

STEP 1

Combine the butter, sugars, and glucose in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and cream together on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg and vanilla, and beat for 7 to 8 minutes.

STEP 2

Reduce the speed to low and add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. mix just until the dough comes together, no longer than 1 minute. (Do not walk away from the machine during this step, or you will risk over mixing the dough.) Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

STEP 3

Still on low speed, add the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, graham crust, oats, and coffee and mix just until incorporated, about 30 seconds. Add the potato chips and pretzels and paddle, still on low speed, until just incorporated. Be careful not to over mix or break too many of the pretzels or potato chips. You deserve a pat on the back if one of your cookies bakes off with a whole pretzel standing up in the center.

STEP 4

Using a 2 3/4 oz ice cream scoop (or a 1/3 cup measure), portion out the dough onto a parchment-lined sheet pan. Pat the tops of the cookie dough domes flat. Wrap the sheet pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 1 week. Do not bake your cookies from room temperature— they will not bake properly.

STEP 5

Heat the oven to 375°f.

STEP 6

Arrange the chilled dough a minimum of 4 inches apart on parchment- or silpat-lined sheet pans. Bake for 18 minutes. The cookies will puff, crackle, and spread. After 18 minutes, they should be very faintly browned on the edges yet still bright yellow in the center. Give them an extra minute or so if that’s not the case.

STEP 7

Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before transferring to a plate or an airtight container for storage. At room temp, cookies will keep fresh for 5 days; in the freezer, they will keep for 1 month.

NOTES

In a pinch, substitute 18 g (1 tablespoon) corn syrup for the glucose. For the “coffee grounds” in this cookie, we tested the recipe with freshly roasted and ground artisanal coffee from Stumptown as well as with crap-tastic coffee grounds that you can find just about anywhere. We discovered that it doesn’t make a difference what kind you use; the cookie is delicious every time. Just make sure you don’t use instant coffee; it will dissolve in the baking process and ruin the cookies. And, above all else, never use wet, sogalicious grounds that have already brewed a pot of coffee. We use Cape Cod potato chips because they aren’t paper-thin, and so they do not break down too much in the mixing process.

GRAHAM CRUST

STEP 1

Toss the graham crumbs, milk powder, sugar, and salt with your hands in a medium bowl to evenly distribute your dry ingredients.

STEP 2

Whisk the butter and heavy cream together. add to the dry ingredients and toss again to evenly distribute. The butter will act as glue, adhering to the dry ingredients and turning the mixture into a bunch of small clusters. The mixture should hold its shape if squeezed tightly in the palm of your hand. If it is not moist enough to do so, melt an additional 14 to 25 g (1 to 1½ tablespoons) butter and mix it in.

STEP 3

Eat immediately, or deploy as directed in a recipe. The crust is easiest to mold just after mixing. Stored in an airtight container, graham crust will keep fresh for 1 week at room temperature or for 1 month in the fridge or freezer.

Locals Only

Welcome to the Coachella Valley's locals only recommendations for you.

This is a list of local businesses, excursions and happenings throughout

the desert. They can be experienced as a single event or group them together to customize your own adventures and day trips.

Please visit each website to confirm the days and hours of each location.

Cabot's Pueblo Museum
Local Tip: Make sure to get tickets in advance if you want the guided tour. Lots of history, artwork and artifacts in this historic house museum. Highly recommended.