Get to Know TicketCity: Ashley

"Everything's Right" with Ashley

I’d like to introduce you to Ashley. Ashley is TicketCity’s Operations Manager, and also your go-to girl for the lowdown on the best of Black Friday deals. Armed only with Starbucks and a credit card, Ashley braved the dark and cold of night, completing her holiday shopping in record time. Whether you’re shopping, shipping, planning or organizing, if you need advice on how to get it done right, she’s your girl.

Without further ado may I introduce: Ashley.

What was your major in college?

Ashley: Government/Pre-Law

What was your first job?

Ashley: Mervyn’s at Lakeline Mall

What are three things you love?

Ashley: Autumn, boat docks, pedicures

What are three things you dislike?

Ashley: Folding clothes, traffic, feet

Do you have any quirks?

Ashley: I refuse to eat cereal out of a bowl, it belongs in a cup!

If you could be on any reality show, which would you choose?

Ashley: Any show that I get to sing (and humiliate myself) on!

What song would the theme music for a movie about your life?

Ashley: Everything’s Right by Matt Wertz

What’s your favorite thing about TicketCity?

Ashley: The people, I truly enjoy the people that I work with!

We’re Fans of Sports, Music, Theatre, and FOOD

The TicketCity family is full of fans: Sports fans. Music fans. Theatre fans. While each of us has our own favorite team or band, there is one thing we can all agree on: Our united love of food.Whether sprinting to the kitchen to get a coveted piece of Ryan’s mom’s famous Tres Leches cake, lining up for Amy’s Ice Cream, or eating five different bowls of chili during our annual Chili Cook Off, this is one topic upon which we can all agree.Since few holidays are better suited for an office full of eaters than Thanksgiving, we’ve decided to list some of our favorite recipes in honor of Thursday’s marathon of food. Have your own favorite concoction for the holidays? Feel free to share it with us in the comments section below. We hope you have a wonderful, happy, and food-filled Thanksgiving!

Caroline’s Grand Cranberry Fool

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup Grand Marnier
  • 1 1/2 cups cranberry conserve or cranberry sauce with whole berries
Directions:

  1. In large bowl, whip cream with an electric beater until it starts to thicken.
  2. Add sugar and beat until it thickens more.
  3. Add Grand Marnier and continue beating until cream is fluffy and holds peaks.
  4. Place cranberry conserve in a bowl and gently fold in the cream with a rubber spatula. Do not overmix. Cream should be marbled pink and white.
  5. Refrigerate until time to serve. Serve in glass bowls.

Rafael’s Donut Upside Down Cake

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup butter or margarine
  • 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 12 mini doughnuts
  • 1 1/3 cups flour
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup butter
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
    1 egg

 

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 350°F.
  2. In a 9-inch square or 9×13 inch rectangle pan melt butter in oven.
  3. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over melted butter.
  4. Arrange mini doughnuts over brown sugar in rows.
  5. In medium bowl, beat remaining ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat on high speed 3 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally.
  6. Pour batter gently over doughnuts, so as not to disturb their careful arrangement.
  7. Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
  8. Immediately place heatproof serving plate upside down over pan; turn plate and pan over. Leave pan over cake a few minutes so brown sugar mixture can drizzle over cake; remove pan.Serve warm; this cake is best when served the same day. Store cake loosely covered.

Ashley’s Pumpkin Pie Cake

Ingredients:

  • 1 can pumpkin (large)
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp cloves
  • ¼ tsp ginger
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 box yellow cake mix
  • 1 cup melted butter
  • Cool Whip

Directions:

  1. Mix the first 9 ingredients together and pour into a 9×13 cake pan.
  2. Sprinkle the yellow cake mix over the pumpkin mixture and then pour the melted butter evenly over top. Bake at 350 for 1 hour
  3. Let it cool and then “frost” it with Cool Whip!

Kendall’s Good Luck Black Eyed Peas

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. fresh or dried black-eyed peas, rinsed and picked over
  • 1 cup chopped yellow onions
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1 quart or more water, as needed
  • 3/4 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp. Tabasco
  • 1/2 lb. smoked sausage or smoked ham, chopped
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
  • 1/2 cup chopped green onions (green and white parts)
  • Hot cooked long-grain white rice.
Directions:

  1. Combine the peas, onions, garlic, water, salt, black pepper, Tabasco, and sausage in a large, heavy pot or Dutch oven. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the peas are tender and creamy, 45 minutes for fresh peas and about 2 hours for dried peas.
  2. Stir in the parsley and green onions and cook for about 2 minutes longer. Serve either over hot cooked rice or mixed together with it.Sometimes, I put this in a slow cooker on high and cook it all day.

Shawn’s Scotch Delight

Ingredients:

  • Scotch
  • Water
  • Ice
Directions:

  1. Take a glass & fill it with ice.
  2. Add scotch

K-Roch’s Rocking Mac N’ Cheese

Ingredients:

  • 1 package elbow noodles
  • Whole Milk
  • Half and Half
  • Sharp Cheddar (regular size block)
  • Gruyer cheese (Small block)
  • Velveeta (3/4 block)
  • Salt and pepper
Directions:

  1. Cook noodles over stove, drain and place in casserole dish
  2. Preheat oven to 350
  3. Add blocks of three different cheeses
  4. Pour milk and half/half onto noodles
  5. Bake for 20 minutes (stirring throughout to help cheese melt)
  6. Salts and pepper to taste

Danielle’s Holiday Sangria

Ingredients:

  • 1 (750 ml) bottle of red zinfandel
  • 4 cups of cranberry juice
  • 2 cups of POM Wonderful pomegranate juice
  • 1 cup of orange juice
  • 3/4 cup of simple syrup
  • 1 apple, unpeeled, cored, quartered & sliced thin
  • 1 orange, halved and sliced thin
  • 1 lemon, halved and sliced thin
  • 1/2 cup of fresh cranberries
  • 1/4 cup of pomegranate seeds
  • Sparkling water
Directions:

  1. Combine all of the ingredients in an extra large storage container, taste and adjust flavors to your liking.
  2. Chill at least 4 hours or overnight.
  3. Stir before serving and transfer to pitchers or pour by the glass.
  4. Use a pair of tongs to extract some of the fruit for each glass, add ice to each glass, and fill glasses, leaving about an inch of free space at the top.
  5. Top each glass off with a splash of sparkling water and lightly stir.

Brandi’s Never Fail Pecan Pie

Ingredients:

  • 3 eggs, well beaten
  • 1 c. dark Karo syrup
  • 3/4 c. sugar
  • 1/4 c. melted butter
  • 1 tbsp. vinegar
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 c. pecans
  • 1 unbaked pie shell
Directions:

  1. To the well beaten eggs, add rest of ingredients, except pecans. Blend well.
  2. Add pecans and pour in pie shell.
  3. Bake at 325 degrees until custard is firm.
  4. May be topped with Cool Whip, if desired.

Get to Know TicketCity: Brittany

For this month’s featured TicketCitian, we’d like to introduce you to Brittany. Brittany is TicketCity’s Purchasing Assistant extraordinaire, and has been a part of the glorious TicketCity family since August 2011.

Brittany is full of talents galore, including some mad baking skills. Just this morning, she dazzled us all with chocolate covered, creme-filled cupcake goodness. Delish!

Ladies and gentleman, may I present to you: Brittany.

Brittany: Purchasing Assistant and Goddess of Cupcakes

What was your major in college?

Brittany: Education

What was your first job?

Brittany: Cleaning offices in high school

What is your hometown?

Brittany: Killeen, Texas

If you were an animal, which animal would you be?

Brittany: Sea turtle (beach bum of the animal kingdom)

What are your favorite things?

Brittany: Sun and sand, live music, reading, and food!

What are some things that you dislike?

Brittany: Mustard, peanut butter, traffic, and hospitals

Do you have any quirks?

Brittany: I avoid stepping on cracks in cement

If you could be on any reality show, which would you choose?

Brittany: Amazing Race

If you could have dinner with anyone, who would it be?

Brittany: Freddy Mercury

What is your favorite sports team?

Brittany: New Orleans Saints

What is your favorite thing about Austin?

Brittany: Kite festival, ice cream festival, music festivals…I love festivals

What is your favorite thing about TicketCity?

Brittany: My favorite thing is all the people and the love.  I have never felt so appreciated at work, small things like little gifts and trinkets and lunch, and everyone celebrating birthdays and anniversaries

My Tailgating Wishlist

Since the glorious season of football is upon is, it seems only right to dedicate a post to one of my favorite aspects of this beloved sport: TAILGATING.

Tailgating is a wondrous pastime, and while many may dabble, there are few that have truly perfected it. Coming from LSU, a school known for its tailgating (some even say #1…), I like to think that I have learned a thing or two about what it takes to make a great tailgate. While not every team is lucky enough to have delicacies like boudin, gumbo, étouffée, and cochon de lait at its tailgates, there are still some accessories that you can add to your tailgate to step it up a notch or 12.

In no particular order, please find the top three items on my tailgating wishlist.

1. Motorized Ice Chest

If you’re a tailgater that starts early and stays late, chances are between visiting friends’ tailgates and participating in the wide variety of game day activities, you’re partaking in quite a bit of walking. This is where the Cruzin Cooler can change your life. Not only does this ice chest keep your beer cold, but it also transports you between tailgating destinations at a top speed of 13 MPH.

Nothing better on a hot day than a cold drink.

2. Gas Powered Blender

The Louisiana heat is not for the faint of heart. In addition to our sauna-esque humidity, temperatures on game day often reach triple digits. Dedicated tailgaters know that the number one way to cool down on a hot day is with an ice-cold drink. That’s where the TailGator Gas-Powered Blender comes in handy. You can whip up a pitcher of margaritas, daiquiris, or any other delicious, frozen beverage your heart desires without so much as a generator or extension cord.

Your Mike the Tiger tattoo is safe in the cool breeze of a misting tent.

3. Misting Tent

As mentioned in wishlist item number two, the Louisiana heat can be quite intolerable. For this very reason, I have included the Cool-Off low pressure misting tent. This 10′x10′ tent is decked out in enough misters to lower the temperature by 20-30 degrees. When you’re talking going from a blistering 100 degrees to a moderate 70 degrees, that’s a big ol’ difference. No longer will you have to worry about your Mike the Tiger tattoo melting off your face–oh no. The Cool-Off tent will change the entire tailgating experience as we know it.

These are just a few of the items on my tailgating wishlist. With each and every tailgate experience, I find new, innovative ways to make the day that much better. What’s on your wishlist, or what do you currently use that stepped your tailgate up?

Get to Know TicketCity: Charley

For this month’s featured TicketCitian, we’d like to introduce you to Charley. Charley is TicketCity’s Database Administrator. Not only does he…administer our database…, but Charley, in fact, has the best first concert story out of anyone on the TicketCity staff.

Charley’s first concert was Pink Floyd in the summer of 1987. Charley was only ten years old, and had entrusted an older, more responsible family member to guide him through his first live music experience. Turns out the older, more responsible relative wasn’t so responsible at all, and Charley ended up wandering all by his lonesome for three hours. Once the two finally reconnected, there was a bit of a role reversal and little, ten-year-old Charley, ended up babysitting the older, not-even-at-all responsible family member.

Get ready to learn all about Charley!

Charley strikes a pose.

What was your major in college?

Charley: Computer Science and Foreign Language (Latin and Mandarin)

What was your first job?

Charley: McDonald’s for 2 weeks to pay for Homecoming

What is your hometown?

Charley: Bedford, Texas

What is your nickname?

Charley: Sorry Charley

If you were an animal, which animal would you be?

Charley: A Liger, because it’s pretty much my favorite animal

What are three things that you love?

Charley: Volunteering, Vancouver, Velveeta

What is something that you dislike?

Charley: The letter V

Do you have any quirks?

Charley: I like the word “robot”, it’s interchangeable

If you could be on any reality show, which would you choose?

Charley: So You Think You Can Dance

What’s your favorite thing about Austin?

Charley: All of the parks

If you could have dinner with anyone, who would it be?

Charley: Ian Curtis