Oatmeal Apple Muffins!

ok i admit, i have been a little bit of a muffin addict recently. but these, hands down are better than any muffins i have ever made or eaten. disregard all other muffin recipes on this blog, this one is the champ. you need:
1 egg
3/4 cup half and half
3 tablespoons canola oil
1/3 cup sugar
1 medium apple, peeled and chopped into even sized chunks
3/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup quick cook oats
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
dash nutmeg

in a mixer, mix the egg, oil and sugar. in a bowl, mix the raisins, walnuts, flour, oats, salt, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. if you have yet to do so, peel and chunk up the apples. you want them to all be relatively even and smallish. you want a few chunks to fit in each muffin. add the apple chunks to the mixer and mix. then add the flour mixture to the egg mixture and mix. scoop batter into a greased muffin tin and bake at 350' for 15-20 mins. and if your feeling special, sprinkle some oats on top of the muffins before baking, they will stick to the top like sprinkles.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Muffins!

another variation on the wonderful pumpkin muffin. taste delish with cream cheese. you need;
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 cup quick cook oats (NOT old fashioned oats)
3/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 cup pumpkin puree (canned pumpkin)
3/4 cup fat free milk
1/3 cup canola oil
1 egg
2 palm fulls shredded coconut
1 palm fulls nuts
1 palm fulls raisins

preheat oven to 400' and spray nonstick spray onto a mini muffin tray, or a big muffin tray. mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. (flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda & pumpkin pie spice). then mix the pumpkin puree, milk, canola oil & egg using a stand mixer, hand mixer or wrist strength. add the flour mixture, coconut, nuts & raisins to the pumpkin mixture. blend until everything is mixed together, being careful not to over mix. (over mixing causes tough muffins.) scoop the batter into the muffin trays and bake for 22-25 mins.

Pumpkin Banana Muffins!

a delish combo of all the leftover cans of pumpkin from thanksgiving and bananas. simple and delish. you need:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup white flour
1/2 cup wheat bran (or you can use wheat germ)
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 mashed bananas (preferably on the brownish side. and if they are not very brown, mush the banana around while it is still in the peel.)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (pumpkin puree is the stuff in the "one pie pumpkin" can. do not confuse pumpkin puree with canned pumpkin pie mix. they are not the same)
1/2 cup skim milk
1 beaten egg
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
handful or so of raisins/ nuts.

preheat over at 400'. stir dry ingredients together in a bowl. (both flowers, wheat bran & baking powder). mix the wet ingredients using a mixer or beaters or really intense wrist strength. (bananas, pumpkin, milk, egg, vegetable oil & nuts/raisins) carefully mix the dry ingredients in with the wet ones. scoop batter into greased mini muffin pans and bake for 20 mins.

Panera Bread

Panis meaning bread in latin, is the inspiration behind this restaurant chain. and yes many other languages use words starting with P to mean bread, but latin came first. any who this is a delish place. well priced, many comfy chairs and delectabilis (latin for delectable) food. (why yes, i do enjoy latin.)the chicken Caesar salad had delish croutons and parm shavings on top. the Asian chicken salad has a sweet and tangy dressing and crisp won tons. the dressing may be a bit strong but goes well with the almonds and cilantro. each come with a good hunk of bread or their own chips. all sandwiches are top of the line, just be sure to get it grilled. really brings out the flavors of the fresh baked breads and melts the cheese. i also enjoy all of their baked goods and cookies. they also make some nice coffee and use republic of tea tea which is delish times 10. my loves (leah and nikki) agree this place is magically delicious.

Soy Milk

i have been reluctant to jump on the soy bandwagon. i struggled to imagine the edamame i have come to love and cherish in a white liquidity consistency. but recently my friends have been telling me i am lactose intolerant because i cannot digest food. so i decided to give this soy milk a try. at first sip of the soy latte, i missed my skim latte. but a few lattes later i have come to appreciate the soy milk. its sweeter than actual milk and is frothier than skim. the soy has more fat and calories than the skim, but it is loaded with nutrients as well. and the soy is delicious in coffee. to further extend my soy vegan-ness i baked with soy butter instead of regular butter. regular butter is like death on a stick, but in most cases its so worth it. i was skeptical about the fake butter at first, because the badness in butter makes it oh-so delicious. but after sticking my fork into the apple crisp, i did not miss the real butter. sadly, i have yet to find a non dairy option for cheese; but i shall continue the hunt.

Fro-Yo

I have fallen in love again. with pints of Ben and Jerry's Fro Yo. for those of you who don't know, fro yo is frozen yogurt, all of the usual lovin' from ice cream with much less fatness. i usually have to leave my house and drive to jp licks, white mountain creamery, or pinkberry for a delicious cup of fro yo. but no longer. i have discovered the selection at Whole Foods, and am blown away. My absolute favorite is black raspberry chip. i was turned on to this after buying a super premium pint of this at a farmers market. the Ben and Jerry's version is delicious too. mounds of dark chocolate chunks with velvety smooth raspberry ice cream. B&J's (Ben and Jerrys, duah) also make a great Chocolate Brownie fro yo. it can be too chocolaty some times, but if you are in the mood it is perfect. fro yo is even better than light ice cream, because after compairing pints in my freezer, the fro yo is actually much lighter. (who knew!). overall, i dont think a bad pint of fro yo exist because what can be bad about ice cream that makes you less fat?

breakfast, lunch or dinner.

this is delicious. an epic combination of sausage, eggs, veggies and hash browns; beautifully layered and lightly browned in a skillet. first take a sausage, i used a sun dried tomato chicken sausage from whole foods, but any flavor will do. cook it for a little bit in a big skillet, until the outside is brown and you can slice it into 1/2 inch thick slices. (handle slicing the sausage the same way you would handle preparing raw chicken) while the sausage is a'brownin', slice up a few veggies. for this one i used 1/4 of an onion and some celery. but you could get more creative and throw in some peppers or mushrooms, just whatevers lying around. throw the peppers and onions in with the sliced sausage into the skillet thats on medium heat. now, when i was making this, my mom had just finished a big pot of hash browns and because i love hash browns, at this point in the cooking i threw a handful into the skillet with the veggies and sausage. now, my moms uses the frozen hash browns and just heats em up on the stove. if you have them lying around, then great throw them in, otherwise dont worry about it. mix everything around in the skillet until the sausage slices are cooked through. then whisk together 2 eggs in a separate bowl and pour on the skillet. turn on a low heat and sprinkle with cheese when the eggs are almost done. slide the wonderful egg thing onto a plate when the eggs are done, and enjoy. i find it to be particularly good with maple syrup, but then again, what is not good with syrup.

Lincoln Street Coffee

I love coffee. its an addiction. if it involves caffeine, im obsessed. but sometimes, one grows tired of star bucks and needs a change of scenery. thats when its time to hit up the independent coffee houses. Lincoln Street Coffee is my personal fave. they take coffee to a new level dunkies, starbucks or peets cannot reach. the lattes are beautifully foamy and the iced coffee is orgasmic. times 10. their blended mocha is 10 times better than any freshen i have ever bought at starbucks. (and i rarely have anything bad to say about 'bucks). i was once waiting for my blended mocha when someone brought out a tray of cookies, and i immediately bought one to have with my mocha because they smelled and looked so beyond delish. and there is an extremely comfy couch for me to sit on to enjoy my coffee. the tea is also great quality, not quite Teavana, but the best i have ever seen at a coffee shop. yay coffee!! {~dedicated to jenny-poo, i love you!}

B-A-N-A-N-A BREAD!

Banana bread is times 10 delsh. all you need are a few brownish bananas, few basic baking ingredients and a oven. it makes a great dessert when mixed in with chocolate chips or a breakfast snack when mixed in with nuts. it only takes about 15 mins to mix and it bakes for an hour. so you could study for the hour and reward yourself for all the hard studying with the bread (or you could spend 45 mins on facebook and study for 15 but its your choice). i use my kitchen aid mixer because i just have to dump everything in the bowl and turn it on, but you can use a hand mixer if you please. or even use your hands, it would be like playing with a giant dough stress ball.
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup Crisco, margarine, butter or shortening. (whatever one you have on hand)
2 eggs
2 brown bananas, (it needs to equal a cup when mushed up)
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts) or chocolate chips.
put sugar and butter in mixer and blend until they are at a creamy consistency. crack 2 eggs into a separate bowl and put 2 bananas in that bowl as well. use a fork to mush the bananas up and whisk the eggs. you want the bananas nice and mushy otherwise there will be big chunks of 'nana in the bread. add the egg/banana mixture to the sugar and butter. mix until well blended. add the dry ingredients, buttermilk and nuts or chocolate chips (or both) and mix to dough consistency. pour into a loaf pan, bake for an hour at 350'
be sure to stick a fork in once it comes out, there is nothing better than warm, soft, mushy bread.

Spicey Spectrum Saladz

so this is colorful, spicy, delicious, healthy and pretty. and if you feed it to people, you will look smart for knowing about a different kind of pepper! a poblano pepper! its a little hotter than a bell pepper, yet still delish. so lets start off with the dressing first shall we, whisk together
juice of 1 lime
juice of half of a lemon
drizzle of EVOO (until you have enough liquid there to call it a dressing)
few drops of Tabasco
finely chopped cilantro leaves.
once that is all nicely whisked, chop up equal amounts of yellow bell pepper, cherry tomatoes and poblano pepper. (it exist, if you cant seem to find one at your local super market, then your stupid. ask the guy there in the apron to help you find it). pour the dressing over the chopped veggies in a bowl and pepper (cracked pepper, ya know the one that's married to the salt) and cheese till taste. i also decided to throw some lettuce in because i like my salads to contain lettuce. the end!

Guac Muffins?!?!

so this week, i got a new oven! YAY. to break it in, i decided to bake avocado muffins. think carrot cake, then carrot bread, then avocado bread (it exist, i have had it) and then putting the avocado bread dough into mini muffin pans. that is how you end up at mini avocado muffins. the avocado is actually really good and you dont need to add butter, making these healthier. yay healthy breakfast!
you need:
3/4 cup mashed avocado (its one avocado, unless you have really small or really big avocados, and i mean like abnormally sized)
3 eggs
1 cup EVOO (or vegetable oil, but i prefer the extra virgin olive oil)
1 tablespoon maple syrup (the recipe called for vanilla but i couldn't find any, and i love Vermont made things soooo)
3 cups flour
1.5 cup sugar
1 tablespoon allspice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
walnuts or some other nut.
mash up the insides of the avocado, and mix it together with the eggs, EVOO, and syrup until you have a nice blend going. then add all of the dry ingredients one by one. fold in the nuts if you desire. spray a mini muffin pan with nonstickkkz sprayzz and drop spoon fulls of dough into the muffin hole. bake for about 20 mins or so, when they look done, take em out, there prob done. enjoy your vegetable based baked good and go brag to your friends about the cool thing you did, if only it was college app worthy....

Good Fat Salad

now, why would the words "good" and "fat" be in the same sentence ever? because all of the ingredients in this salad contain to what is referred to as good fats. i dont know what it means or why some fats are good or bad, and i am no hurry to get a degree in nutrition to find out. this salad is possibly the most DELISH thing ever, if you dont like salad you mind is about to be changed. this is great if you want to impress people with your culinary talent or you haven't had a solid meal in a few days. you need:
2 spoonfills grainy mustard (teaspoon if you are just making salad for yourself, tablespoon if for more people etc)
6 spoonfills EVOO
3 spoonfills balsamic vinegar
2 spoonfills maple syrup
1 avocado
crasins (cranberrys in rasin form, if you are unfimilar with the word)
pine nuts
and spring lettuce mix or romaine
in a bowl, whisk the grainy mustard, EVOO, balsamic and maple syrup together until they have the consistency of dressing. (your making a salad, and this is the dressing, you want the consistency of dressing for the salad now dont you?) Hold the avocado in your left hand and pick up a knife in your right. (other way around if your a lefty). stick the knife deep into the avocado and drag it around the 'cado in a circle. pretend the 'cado is a globe and you are drawing a horizontal line across it with a knife that connects to the other side. open the avocado and take the pit out. now, hold one half of the "cado in your hand with the green soft part (the part you eat) facing you. cut the avocado up into chunks while it is still in the skin. (drag the knife through the 'cado deep enough to touch the skin, but not poke through it.) then try turning the avocado inside out over the bowl you are planning on eating your salad out of. if done right, the avocado chunks will pop out into the bowl, otherwise epic fail. take out a small skillet and pour a handful or so of the pine nuts in it. toast them over medium heat. they are usually done when you can smell them or start turning brown. toss them around in the skillet a few times so there is an even toasting. while the nuts are a brownin' wash the lettuce and put in same bowl as avocado. also begin to sprinkle the crasins to taste over this epic bowl. to top off this magnificent ensalada, sprinkle over the luscious warm pine nuts and drizzle an ample amount of dressing as well. prepare for deliciousness times 10.

leftovers to dessert

so i had a little party for myself the other night, and ended up having 3 different desserts. this one was the easiest. chocolate covered marshmallows! you need:
bakers chocolate. (instead of boiling it weirdly, i just microwave it. just take it out and stir the chocolate around every 30 seconds)
marshmallows (the more the merrier, i find the big ones work the best, but the small ones would be delish in hot chocolate!)
gram crackers (optional, if you want to make frozen s'mores.)
hokay so break up the chocolate and place in a microwaveable bowl. microwave in 30 second increments, stopping to stir in between each one. when the chocolate is perfectly melted, dunk one side of the marshmallow into the chocolate. roll it around a bit, you want about 1/2 of the 'mallow to be smothered in chocolate. if you are doing frozen s'mores, place the chocolaty 'mallow chocolate side down on a gram cracker, otherwise just place on a plate. freeze either way and be sure to take out 20 mins or so before serving. otherwise the chocolate will be frozen to the plate and no one will be able to eat them! happy desserting!

Teavana helps me find nirvana

i have a new starbucks/ dunkies/ jamba, its Teavana. the store itself makes me feel calm and Buddha like. so far i have yet to have a tea i don't like there. i usually just in, try all their samples (they change every day) and purchase a cup of whatever sample i find the best. all of it is always delicious. the sugar is also really good. its like rock sugar or something cool and adds a perfect sweetness. one of the teas i had the other day was a flower. legit i had a flower in my cup. it was so cool! and a large tea is the same price as my tall nonfat latte. go tea!

why is the fridge empty?

so yesterday, i was starving. i was home alone around 1:00 pm and desired for a cool lunch. it was 90 million degrees outside and humid enough to be a sauna. i wanted a cold-ish lunch. perhaps a salad, smoothie, or maybe some ice cream. but no, my fridge was lacking salad ingredients, yogurt for said smoothie, and for the first time in my life, there was not one pint of Ben and Jerry's to be found in the freezer. there were also no eggs, bread, or even frozen chicken tenders to be found. now most would give up on finding lunch after such setbacks, but i managed. here is what i did.
-frozen fruit is delicious when covered in maple syrup. cold enough to make up for the lack of ice cream.
-peanut butter taste delish on a fork when covered in raisins. think ants on a long without the log.
-cereal goes with everything. never forget that.
-microwaved marshmallows are amazing. just don't leave em in too long or they blow up. try mushing in some chocolate chips for the s'mores effect.
-make a cliff bar sandwich. spread peanut butter (or jelly, or nutella, or honey) between 2 cliff bars. eat like a sandwich. (this is the ultimate lets go hike a mountain and run a marathon snack)
if all else fails, try boiling your crocs. i hear there edible when boiled.

7.9 hours until exam

its exam season. this means late nights of panic attacks, rereading entire books and calling friends to have mutual freak outs. for me, all this freaking out makes me hungry and exhausted. and i don't have the time to whip up a wonderful snack during any of my strenuous flashcard sessions. these are some of the best late night study sesh snacks. from personal experience, these keep me awake and happy.
1. raisin bran. i find it delish and its just a nice munchy.
2. celery dipped in PB. sometimes i stir in raisins and honey too. the loud crunching wakes me up and brings the blood flow to my head.
3. green tea. this is the ultimate calmer if you cannot figure out how you will learn everything in time. and the caffeine will awaken you a bit without preventing sleep for days.
4. cliff bar. cliff bars= energy. they are also delish
5. granola and yogurt. just think of the yogurt as ice cream and the granola as sprinkles. a much healthier option than the Ben and Jerry's pint in the freezer.
6. a water bottle. chug down some water. if that doesn't keep you up, having to pee all night will.
good luck everyone!

Guac

so i used to hate guacamole. now i can not get enough. today i googled a recipe, but realised i only had a few of the ingredients, so i whipped up my own version. you need:
-1 avocado. slice a thin bit off the side, and use a spoon to scoop out the green goodness into a bowl.
- a handful of grape tomatoes, sliced up really small
- 1/3 of a onion, chopped up really small.
- a palmful of arugula, finely chopped. (or cilantro if you have it)
- a few dashes of Tabasco
- yellow bell pepper, sliced into strips. (i like to use the bell pepper strips instead of chips to enjoy the guac, but if you are a chip person ignore the bell pepper.)

mix and mush everything together in a giant bowl. use the yellow bell peppers to scoop up and enjoy each wonderful bite of the guac.

Salsa Soup

i made this when i was sick. the spice really cleaned out my sinuses. it is like the essence of a burrito in soup form. you need:
1 small container of the whole foods tomato salsa. ( if your whole foods does not have this, chop up really small, 2 parts tomatoes, one part onions and a few cilantro leaves, enough to fill one of those small pint containers.)
2/3 cup vegetable broth. (i always have a box of this on hand)
1/2 of a red bell pepper, cut into little squares
1/2 of an avocado, thinly sliced into small chunks
a dash of lemon pepper ( or regular pepper, however i used the lemon crazy Jane's pepper) and a dash of paprika.
some mozzarella to sprinkle on top when done. (as much as you prefer)

pour the broth into a smallish soup pot with the chopped red bell pepper on medium high heat for 5 mins. add the spices with the bell pepper.
reduce the heat to medium low, add the salsa. cover until peppers are cooked.
stir in the avocado and mozzarella,
pour and enjoy!
(this recipe serves one, to serve 2 just double everything)

Cookie Crunchhhhh

so recently i had one of those huge tubs of cookies in my house. ya know one of those with 48 cookies in the big plastic things. the cookies themselves weren't that good, so i thought of delish things to do with them.
1. microwave them. 3o seconds to a minute makes em warm and gooey. like you just pulled them out of the oven.
2. grill them. place on a small skillet on low heat, flip a few times until brown on both sides. takes about a minute on each side.
3. make a cookie sandwich! spread peanut butter between 2 cookies, or try a scoop of ice cream!
DELISHH

BIRTHDAYYYY

TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY! w00t! so to celebrate i wanted to bake a cake of some sort, but we have no cake mix, and i dont feel like starting from scratch. but i found brownie mix, and mini muffin pans. my fave brownie mix is the Ghiradelli kind, much better than betty crocker. so i made the brownie mix according to the box, tossed in some nuts and a little cinnamon to the mix. then i poured the mix into a greased mini muffin pan and baked until a toothpick came out clean when i stabbed it into the little brownie. (this will take longer than you think.) pop em out of the little tray, and you have mini brownie cupcakes for everyone! yay! or u can eat them all (they are decadently delicious when they are warm, and look very tempting). to really add some flare, spread with frosting. this is the recipe for my fave cream cheese frosting:
melt together in a small sauce pan over medium heat 8 ounces (2 packages) cream cheese, 1/2 cup softened butter and one teaspoon vanilla extract. stir in slowly 2 cups of confectioners sugar.
spread this on your brownie bites and you will have a delicious excuse for not buying a cake! (so u could share these with everyone instead!)

my little garden

so mama drew and i went to home depo the other day, and i was swooped away by all the things i could plant. i ended up buying grape tomatoes and sweet basil. they have yet to reach an edible form, but they look wonderful sitting in plastic pots on my windowsill. so to get excited for these pending matoes and basil, i made some eggs. first, whisk together an egg and an egg white. throw in some sliced grape 'matoes and whisk em around too. heat a small skillet on medium low heat after spraying it with nonstick spray and sprinkling a little peeper on the pan as well. toss the eggs on the skillet and resist the urge to push it around with a spatula. these aren't scrambled eggs, so dont touch them. when the eggs look almost cooked in the middle, sprinkle a little parm cheese on them. then rip up some fresh basil leaves and sprinkle them on the eggs too. fold it over like an omelet. plate it and enjoy!

Brunchy Brunchy Brunch

I love brunch. Brunchy Brunchy Brunch. so this morning when i opened the fridge, i found smoked salmon, eggs, purple onions, and grainy mustard. ok so to start, heat a supa small nonstick skillet on super low heat. crack an egg directly into the skillet, dont whisk it or anything. sprinkle a couple slices of red onions on top of the cooking egg. when it looks done (it shall resemble a really skinny crepe) fold it like you would a omelet. then slice it in half. take a slice of smoked salmon and spread some grainy mustard on it. wrap the salmon around the half of the omelet with the mustard side on the egg. think of it as wrapping sushi. the egg is the rice and the salmon is the seaweed. garnish with a raw purple onion. this is delish hot, or makes a great appetizer if you put it in the fridge for a bit. a great alternative to bagels and lox. and also makes a fab fancy brunch treat.

POPPIN FRESH!

So this is possibly the greatest popcorn ever. and i am not lying or exaggerating. its way beyond that yellow goo at the movies. so microwave a bag of plain popcorn according to what the box says. i am a huge fan of Newman's own popcorn. and i think pop secrete is absolute shit and taste like cardboard, not popcorn. microwaving popcorn is an art form, that with practice you shall master. for too long it burns, and for too short you get all kernels. Ok, So quickly while the corn is still hot, pour it into a bowl and sprinkle with parm cheese and a little chunk of butter. (more if your into that sorta thing). the goal here is for the cheez to melt. only about 1/3 of it will melt though. just enjoy the rest by taking bites from the bottom of the bowl. the butter should melt pretty well. then add a teaspoon or so (a bunch of violent shakes of the spice jar) of garlic powder. and a bunch of cranks of the pepper mill as well. (maybe like half a teaspoon or so, more if you really like pepper). dont go overboard on both, otherwise it will be too much. stir vigorously and enjoy. ideal for a movie night or when you and a friend are chillin in the kitchen at 1 am discussing how much your feet hurt and what shit just went down at whatever party/dance/thing you were at. i have had this popcorn in both occasions and it just really made those situations fab.

Chinese aint Cheap

Tonight i was craving something somewhat Asian. but i knew i needed veggies and didn't have the cash to call Golden Temple, Oishii Sushi or Bernard's. so i made a peanut/veggie/chicken stir fry. you need:
veggies, i just used some of those pre chopped packaged veggies at whole foods, it was a combo of onions, bell peppers, broccoli, zucchini and squash.
a big tablespoon of fancy peanut butter. (crunchy or smooth, the kind where the oil separates works best)
A couple drizzles of balsamic vinegar and EVOO.
some already cooked chicken (i used some leftover rotisserie chicken, if you dont have any, just quickly bake up some nuggets or steal some grilled chicken from the caff.
1. heat a skillet with a drizzle of evoo on medium high heat
2. toss in veggies
3. stir around until veggies are almost done
4. put heat on medium low and dump in a giant PB scoop
5. add a splash of balsamic vinegar
6. mush around a bit until the peanut butter melts to some degree
7. toss in the chicken and stir
ENJOY!!

Starbucks VS DD's

so this past week, i had the honor of attending a model congress in the dump known as new jersey. as a mock debate to show all the newbies how its done, we debated over which is better, dunkies or starbucks. i immediately stood up to show my love of starbucks. so now its time for a little review. starbucks hands down has the best coffee and lattes etc. DD's are always wayyyy to freakin hot and dont even compare. however, dunkies makes a mean iced coffee. the best. starbucks food isn't that good, at least for what i am paying. and i dont think their breakfast sandwiches look that appetizing. and they dont toast their bagels. (wtf, who gives me a untoasted bagel, what is this) dunkin makes the best pastries. everything is frosted and covered in sprinkles. its awful for you, but delicious. the bagles are fresh and ARE TOASTED!. never have i tried the breakfast sandwiches at DD's because i question the quality and do not desire to eat mystery meat. i enjoy the atmosphere of starbucks much more as well. they have comfy couches and nice people that consistently make a delish latte. the people at dunkies often do not speak English and are annoying. the atmosphere is also like that of a mc donalds. aight i am tired, need to go throw back some caffeine or go to bed. peace.

im thinking JAMBA

hi all, i need to explain my love in life. the reason i exist. its jamba juice. its a-MAZINGGG. without it i am just a jamba-less child. so my personal fave is the strawberry nirvana with a vita-boost. i like the smallest one, because then i can have 4 in a day. a original will full you up for like a few hours. ok so the strawberry nirvana is a delicious blend of strawberries, B-A-N-A-N-A-S (i love gwen) and some juices. its beyond delish. i also enjoy berry fulfilling. swirled with strawberries, blueberries and raspberries. delish delish delish. and for breakfast, i enjoy the one with the granola blended right in and topped with B-A-N-A-N-A-S (more love of gwen) slices. called the chunky strawberry, this also has peanut butter swirled in. who dosent love granola and peanutbutter put in a blender. if you dont go die. ok so when in NYC or any other state that is graced with a wonderful jamba, start off your day with the granoley chunky strawberry, then berry fulling and end the day with strawberry nirvana. so sadly, there isiant a jamba in in Boston, but dont worry i already sent a threatening email to jamba exects, and the guy assured me they would look into building in Boston. this is a wonderful picture of my friend charlezz in the jamba in timez squarez

Squashin' Spaghetti

HOLA! so my friend is on this detox diet, where all she eats is vegges and fruits for 2 weeks or so. most of my friends panicked at this thought, but in reality there are so many creative, delish things to do with veggies. this is one of my favorite, spaghetti squash with tomato sauce. its like eating pasta, but better. hokay so first you need to buy a spaghetti squash. it is about the size of a watermelon and yellow. so fill a pot big enough to hold the squash with water, salt the water and bring it to a boil. (and because i am also currently studying for a chem test, adding the salt to the water is a colligative property that makes the temp of the boiling point rise). while you are waiting for the water to boil, stab the squash with a fork a couple times. there just needs to be a few holes. and in addition to the stabbing, you could try and figure out at what temp the water will boil at. when the water is a bubblin, drop the squash into that hot tub. this is a challenge because if you just drop it, hot water will splash up onto your face. its hilar to watch, but painful to experience. let it boil for 20 mins or so. while the squash is a cookin, its time to make a little sauce! open up a can of diced tomatoes and pour it into a skillet on medium heat. do the same with a small can of tomato paste. add some chunks of fresh tomato to the skillet. either cherry tomatoes cut in half, or a big tomato cut into smalish chunks. try not to loose any tomato juice on the cutting board, you want all that juice in the skillet. then if you have any fresh basil (or any fresh spices really) rip up the leaves into lil tiny bits and stir in. otherwise try some dried basil, oregano, parsley or other green leafy spice that goes well on pasta. melt in a bit of parm cheese as well. then turn off the skillet. if you dont feeling like making sauce, feel free to use the canned kind. hokay so after 20 mins, take the 'ghetti squash out. i suggest stabbing it with one of those big fork things you use to turn something on the grill. now its going to be hot, but try to cut the squash in half the horizontal way. the insides should be cooked enough to be scooped out easily. put the insides back in to the boiling water for about 5-10 mins or so. scooping out the insides is a interesting process if the squash is still really hot. if needed, let it cool a bit before cuttin it in half. scooping out the insides halfway really makes the squash cook faster. however, if you really cant deal with cutting it, let the whole squash cook for another 15 mins or so, until it is tender to the poke of a fork. so pile up some of the insides on a plate, lather up in the 'mato sauce and dig in!

review:PINK BERRY

This weekend, i took a holiday to New York. i was compelled to try pink berry. i have heard a lot of people say its delish, and a few people have told me it sucks. there was a line outside when i arrived. this is always a good sighn. the menu appeared to consist of 3 ice cream flavors, the original, coffee and green tea. um so being confused by the ever so strange menu board, i asked the cashier whats good here, and she said the original. so i got a small original with strawberries and raspberries. usually, if i get a topping its sprinkles. i never trust the fruit at ice cream places. but the fruit here was a big deal judging how everyone had their ice cream smothered in kiwis, strawberries and blueberries. this place obviously has a cult following of skinny NY-ers. ok so while waiting behind a bunch of other pushy new yorkers (still getting over the fact that the socks won the world series, its ok guys, its just karma.) i noticed the nutritional facts. basically it is the healthiest ice cream on the planet. 70 calories per 1/2 cup and no fat whatsoever. the ice cream was interesting to say the least. at first the bite was good. had the right color and texture i have come to expect from my soft serve. however there was a pungent after taste. a mildly fruity pungent after taste. it wasn't bad, just interesting. the fruit however was delish. i have never enjoyed such high quality toppings. overall, its not remotely close to J.P. licks, but its the best diet ice cream i have ever had.

Freakin Frittatas!

hokay so, a frittata is like the ultimate omelet. its about the size of a personal pizza and is beyond delish. tonight i did breakfast for dinner and made this delish frittata. first, i took my baby nonstick skillet and rubbed this garlic and herb butter all over it. (if you dont have cool looking butter, you can use regular and just add some garlic, or just use some EVOO). from there crack 2 eggs in a small bowl. slice up about a handful of grape matoes (or cut big ones into small chunks). take a forkfull of pesto and scoop it into the bowl. then take about 1/2 a forkful of sun dried tomatoes. at this point, heat the buttered baby skillet to a medium low heat. whisk all of that together intensely with the fork. then sprinkle on some arugula leaves, spinach or basil. pour the eggs into the skillet. now it will be so tempting to push the eggs around with a spatula or turn the heat up, but let it be and keep the heat DOWN. the lower the heat, the better the eggs. otherwise the bottom burns, and the top is raw. (this has happened to me many times, DONT MAKE MY MISTAKES). but feel free/ obligated to add some spices to the eggs that you are not touching. i am a fan of mary janes mix it up pepper. it tis delish. hokay so when the egg looks almost cooked in the center, lift up an edge with a spatch. if the egg is burnt, you could flip it over . if it is not, you are at the perfect juncture to add a little cheese to the top. either way, its not that hard to tell when eggs are done. um so when i took mine off the skillet today i decided it looked like a pizza without any sauce, so i broke some marinara and parm chez from the fridge. it was beyond delish. once you get the fritata thing down, feel obligated to mix up the ingredients. its a great way to clean out all the produce in the fridge. i wish all of you a super fab breakfast-for-dinner.

the idiot proof veggie, CORN

sadly, the price of our beloved corn is on the rise. thanks to ethanol. I do love alternative energy, but i do also enjoy a nice cob of corn. so i suggest we all go out and buy a couple cobs of good old maize before the price goes up even more. the easiest way to cook corn is to boil it. 1. fill a pot of water, salt the water, cover and let boil. 2. while the water is boilin', husk the corn (rip all the green stuff off and break off the white thing on the butt of the corn). as fun as corn husking is, it is also incredibly messy. i suggest you do that over the sink. 3. plop the corn into the water. 4. allow to cook for i want to say 15 mins or so, but sometimes more and sometimes less. when the corn looks good, strain it and enjoy. another great way to enjoy this classic American veggie is grilled. this is possibly the best, but a grill is needed for it to work. 1. place a husked corn cob on a square of tin foil that is big enough to wrap around the whole corn. 2. lather the corn in butter. (the more the merrier, you want a good chunk of butter to be used up on this corn) 3. sprinkle the corn with lots of salt 'n' pepa. if your feeling ambitious, add a little cayenne peper, garlic powder or even fennel seed. 4. roll up tinfoil around corn, being sure to fold in the ends. you dont want any of that buttery deliciousness falling out. 5. place these corn roll ups on the grill. turn a couple times until the corn is done. about 10 mins or so. dig in! if you are still to stupid to figure out how to make corn after reading this, try the frozen kind.

'MATOES SALAD

This is one of my all time fave salads. its beyond easy. and u can switch up the ingredients depending on whats in the fridge. so i use arugula, tomatoes and newman's own Caesar dressing to start. from there anything from pesto to taco meat can be added. (i dont know why one would want to add taco meat, but i could be done). any type of 'matos (tomatoes, duah) can be used. the grape ones can just be washed and tossed in, bigger ones cubed or if i am feeling indulgent, i will slice up some fresh heirloom 'matoes from the local farmers market. (its almost spring, they will be out soon!) arugula is a nice spicy lettuce. if you dont have any, iceberg would work too. the mixed lettuce with the purple leaves in it (mixed field greens i think is the correct term) dont work that well, but its do-able. if you dont have newmans own Caesar dressing, look for another not creamy Caesar dressing. (key point, NOT CREAMY). otherwise whisk together 2 parts olive oil, 1 part vinegar (balsamic or cider) a sprinkle of parm and salt 'n' pepa. its 10 pm on a Sunday night, and writing this is making me crave salad. until next time.

Caffeine Queen

So, I absolutely love Coffee. but i hate paying 3 dollars a cup at starbucks. but i do enjoy a 8 dollar, venti nonfat extra foamy doubleshot pumpkin spice latte charged to my moms plastic. so i got a coffee press to brew at home. mine (the one to the right) was around 50 dollars, but i have seen them for 12. they are a cheap and better alternative to brewing machines. all that is needed to use these is ground coffee and a way to heat water! I prefer to use a kettle to heat water over the stove, but if you dont have a kettle, a small pot works just as well. fill the coffee press pitcher with water and pour that water into the kettle. place the kettle on the stove and turn on high. while the water is heating up, take the coffee grounds out of the freezer and grab a tablespoon. it is recommended that for every 6 fl oz of water, there be 2 tablespoon of coffee in the pitcher. however, if you like your coffee strong, add another half tablespoon. i find that 5 heaping tablespoons works perfectly for my 32 fl oz coffee press. when the water is boiled, pour it into the pitcher and cover. let sit for about 2 min. then press it down. let sit for another min or so, longer if you want stronger coffee. after that, the coffee is ready to pour, sip and enjoy!

chil-LAX-in

aight aight, lax season here in new England has begun. kina funny because there is still a snowbank in one corner of the field. lax season means one thing for me, i am tired and i am hungry. i am so one of those people who eats a ton thinking "its ok, i have practice today". but by doing that, one eats more than they burn. so here are a few healthy snack ideas for this lax season.

1. The Cliff Bar. these are beyond delish. my fave is the peanut butter chocolate chip one, but they all are good. these are best eaten before a practice or a game, because they contain energy.

2. A Banana. bananas are loaded with potassium. good for your toes. (ok i dont know if this is actually true, but a bunch of intense athlete friends tell me this is true)

3. Celery or Carrots. both will stay crisp in a baggie in your gym bag until game time. a delish way to kill the time until practice starts or to keep you going till dinner. a lil PB from the caff makes a great dip.

4. A Nalegene Bottle (or sigg). hokay so, i love anything that saves the planet. and instead of going into a rant about my hate for bottled water and how its killing the planet, i am just going to suggest the nalgene. carry it around all day, starting at breakfast. you will do much better in everything.

ok my fingers are sore, along with the rest of my body. ttyl.

review, GRILL 23

So for Easter, Mama and Papa Drew took me, my brother and his friend to Grill 23 on Berkeley st. I am really not a fan of red meat, steak, porter house etc, its all the same to me. my brother, on the other hand ate 48 ounces of still mooing cow. I started with a Caesar. it was good. i went with the sea scallops because i have never had bad sea food in Boston. the scallops themselves were fresh, but i was not sure about the spice rub on them. the brussels sprouts on the side were extremely delish. i didnt know brussels sprouts could be that good. the carrot stuffed with what i believe to be lentils was sweet and good. separately, these items were delish, but did not work cohesively. to finish it off, vanilla bean crem brule. beyond delish. delish delish delish. now i usually cant afford anything that cost nearly that much, but it was not on my tab. so if your parents decide that u deserve a real meal, go for the steak, it seems to be their thing.

Easter hang-over

its the day after Easter
either you feel fat from stuffing all those peeps and chocolate eggs down your throat
or you have nothing to do with that basket filled of picked through chocolate. Well, here are some solutions.
-use your chocolate bars to create delish chocolate covered strawberries
1. melt plain chocolate in the microwave (this works best with Hershey's kisses and little chocolate bars) stirring every 30 secs to min in the microwave.
2. stir strawberries (or bananas, peaches whatever you have on hand) around in chocolate and place on plate.
3. cover plate in foil or plastic wrap, freeze until chocolate is solid.

or put those mms and recces to use!
1. stir mms into your fave cookie recipe instead of chocolate chips
or
2. instead of stirring in any chips, push a Reece cup (or any other hunk of chocolate) on top of the raw cookie. bake normally.

now, its hard to bake with peeps, but there is still tons of fun to have with them, try
1. microwaving them, see what happens
2. let the sit out and harden, then throw them at freshman.
3. mush them into some form of modern art

if your feeling way to stuffed and need away to make the candy disappear try
1. placing all of the candy in a bowl and placing the bowl in your common room, on your desk, on your adviser's desk, at your office,
2. better yet, use it to bribe your friends.

and don't forget to freeze a few chocolate bars, you never know when the craving for one will strike.

Are You Freakin Hungry?

Welcome starving students, boarders, and fellow bostonians
you shall find here easy recipes, restaurant reviews, snacks, foodie ideas and simple ways to entertain, all on a super low budget
get ready to eat