An Unexpected Celebrity Couple

• Ronzoni's Garden Delight Veggie Tricolor Penne Rigate, cooked al dente with a little sea salt in the water
• Chipotle black bean burger

• Sautéed:
• Kale
• Swiss chard
• Tomatoes
• Olive oil
• Sea salt
• Garlic

• Garnish:
• Pumpkin seeds
• Bronze fennel leaves

The pumpkin seeds and bronze fennel leaves were the unexpected celebrity couple in this dish. I added the fennel to compliment the spice of the black bean burger. I find that the warmth of the fennel calms my palette. I added the pumpkin seeds because I thought their crunch would hit it off with the pasta. I first had nuts in pasta in a pesto pasta dish, in which the chef added slivered almonds. I didn't know I had been waiting for a crunch with my pasta until it was right in front of me. Even though the pumpkin seeds got along well with the pasta, and the fennel liked the burger, it was the pumpkin seeds and the fennel that sent sparks flying. Their flavors blended as if they were the same ingredient. The more neutral pumpkin seeds were brought to life by the fennel leaves, as if finishing the sentence that the pumpkin seeds started. A match made in heaven.

What was it about the flavor profiles of these two ingredients that made them pair so well together? I did some research. In an in-depth explanation of staple kitchen spices and their uses, a website called "Adventures in Spice" explains that fennel is used in curry powder, which supports my instinct to pair it with the spicy black bean burger. It also combines well with garlic and tomatoes, further connecting it with other ingredients in my dish. What about pumpkin though? Interestingly, although fennel isn't linked with pumpkin, anise is. "Adventures in Spice" writes that fennel is "reminiscent of anise but sweeter and less pungent." Anise and fennel both taste like licorice and have a warm flavor. It makes sense to me, then, that fennel would also pair well with pumpkin. The more you know! 

Overall, this was a really tasty meal. Each bite was different, thus avoiding what people at work describe as "palette fatigue." It's difficult to figure out how to feature all the flavors individually and together. I've found that if I layer the ingredients in the dish instead of mixing them, I can mix and match them with each bite. This provides me with a more varied eating experience. Yum! 

Whipped Cream Sunset

This dessert is inspired by a Lemon Curd dessert served at the place I work at, Sunbird Kitchen in Orleans, MA. The plating is different (Sunbird serves theirs on a flat plate instead of a bowl), and whipped cream in my dish replaces the lemon curd base in theirs. The ingredient pairings are all Sunbird-inspired though. Mixed in with the whipped cream are fresh and melted frozen blueberries. I melted the frozen blueberries mainly so I could get the juice, but it also adds a fun temperature contrast. Sprinkled on top of those are crumbled lemon wafer cookies. The dish is garnished with fresh lemon zest and thyme (Sunbird uses thyme oil in their dessert). Next time I would also sprinkle coarse sea salt on top to liven it up. I finished the dish by wedging a whole lemon cookie on the side of the bowl. I learned that it's important to add the whole cookie last, or else it will soak up the blueberry juice and turn soggy and blue. Soggy and blue isn't great for initial presentation, but once the dish is served it's fun to eat the cookie last because as the cookie soaks up the juice, it looks like a sun setting over water. 

Serve with a spoon and enjoy with a "Pocket Full of Sunshine." 

Whipped Cream Sunset

• 4-5 heaping tbsp of homemade whipped cream (heavy whipping cream, vanilla and cane sugar to taste) 
• Handful of fresh blueberries
• Handful of frozen blueberries (melted in microwave for 40 seconds)
• 3-4 lemon wafer cookies (2-3 crumbled, 1 whole)
• Lemon zest
• Fresh thyme

A Satisfying Spice

Dish courtesy of Sunbird Kitchen.

Tokyo turnips with xo sauce, chili oil, toasted quinoa and nasturtium flowers. It’s like stepping into a hot bath. The chili oil burns my mouth at first, but I let it linger on my tongue. I breathe and feel my sinuses clear. The juicy Tokyo turnips give respite from the spice. I sink in deeper. The Hinona Kabu turnips taste similar to radishes, and pair well with the nasturtium flowers. They add a peppery flavor, which compliments the subtle saltiness of the xo sauce––a caramelized shellfish and meat sauce. Surprisingly the xo sauce is my favorite part of the dish. After I finish eating, I wipe my mouth. My lips feel slightly numb, but I don’t try to neutralize the spice with dairy. It’s a satisfying spice.

This summer I’m lucky to be working at Sunbird, a local café in Orleans, MA that serves intentional dishes for mindful eating––carefully selected ingredients, thoughtful preparation, and considerate presentation. The kitchen sources their ingredients from local farmers–the turnips in the above dish are from Chatham Brews Inn (CBI) Farm in Brewster–and the menu changes depending on what’s in season. Above is a new dish I tried last week, after chatting extensively with one of the chefs about the turnips and the kitchen’s plan for them. Through inquiring about, tasting, and selling the food we serve I’m learning to trust what ingredients a chef pairs together. In many of my past experiences as a customer at restaurants, I've been particular about how I want my food prepared, what ingredients can be left out, and can I please substitute this ingredient for that one? Although I would not voluntarily add chili oil to the dish, my experience with the dish wouldn’t have been the same without it.

Dish courtesy of Sunbird Kitchen.
Meatballs with harissa yogurt, ricotta salata, dill, and mint. A Moroccan-inspired dish––harissa, dill, and
mint are all common in Morocco. It's not as heavy as meatballs and marinara, and the aftertaste reminds me
of spicy chorizo sausage. The dill, meatballs, and ricotta salata compliment each other well.

Through my work at Sunbird, I'm rekindling a joyous relationship with food. I respect the entire experience of a meal, from selecting the ingredients to washing the dishes after. Inspired by my work at Sunbird, I’ve been experimenting in my own kitchen a lot this summer. Here are some highlights:

1. 

   Lettuce, garden veggie burger, crumbled smoked gouda cheese,
   cucumbers, sautéed carrots and kale, hummus, Braggs dressing.  

   Melted gouda cheese on a garden veggie or portabella burger. Just trust me.
2. Mixing fresh veggies with sautéed veggies adds interesting temperature and texture to a salad.
3. Fresh mint counterbalances spicy and fishy flavors.
4. Herbs are most flavorful when kept raw. Thank you, Sunbird Kitchen.
5. Fresh mint and dill compliment each other.
6. Pickled turnips.
7. Braggs dressing, sesame ginger tofu, and sea beans. The combination of flavors reminds me of sushi.

   

   Lettuce, sesame ginger tofu, sea beans, cucumbers, egg yolk,
   hummus, parsley, Braggs dressing. 

8. Fresh parsley on hummus. It echoes the traditional tabouli and hummus combination. This is best when hummus is the main feature of the dish––otherwise the hummus can overpower the dish.
9. Fish sauce. I've had it in three different dishes this summer: the butter turnips from Sunbird, kimchi from Sunbird, and crispy brussels sprouts from The Canteen in Provincetown. It's salty, spicy, and satisfying.
10. Poached egg whites. Smoked egg yolks. Fried eggs. Omelets. Sunny side up eggs. Scrambled eggs. I've tried them all this summer.

Lettuce, cucumbers, granny smith apple,
scrambled eggs with kale, carrots, sesame ginger tofu.

My latest creation: Brown rice toast spread with fresh avocado. Topped with two fried eggs,
sautéed mushrooms and onions, salt, pepper, and fresh rosemary. I was proud of this one.


Brown rice toast. Mango and strawberries.
Omelet with goat cheese and sautéed mushrooms, onions, and rosemary. Topped with fresh rosemary.
It's photo worthy because the omelet actually stayed intact when I flipped it. 

When I take the time to cook, arrange, eat, and reflect on my food, I'm less likely to jump for the next flavor. I sit back and appreciate what I'm tasting. I’m present. I’m satisfied.

The Art of Procrastination

All of a sudden, there is so much I "need" to do when it's time to clean my room...

I "need" to cut up and redesign an old tie-dye T-shirt...

I "need" to make Blueberry Four Grain Pancakes...

And I "need" NEED to update my blog. This I actually do need to do, so I am going to take advantage of this legitimate need to procrastinate cleaning my room just a bit longer, and talk about my breakfast this morning. 

My love for pancakes was rekindled at our In the Heights post-show cast party at IHOP. I had never not liked pancakes, but I would've preferred waffles or crepes if you asked me my preference. Quite frankly, I had never really liked IHOP, either. I had been only twice before, once being in New York for a track meet. The fact that I was running a big race that weekend, on top of the fact that I ordered some sort of strawberry yogurt crepes, left a sour taste in my mouth for the franchise.

On that particular post-show night at IHOP, I got the Harvest Grain 'N Nut pancakes (filled with oats, almonds and English walnuts), topped with blueberry compote. Maybe it was the post-show adrenaline. Maybe it was the fact that it was 11:30 at night, and everything sweet tastes better at 11:30 at night. Maybe it was just that IHOP has really good freaking pancakes. Whatever it was, they were delicious.

My next momentous trip to IHOP was two months later, at the post-show cast party for our spring comedy, Testing, Testing. I got the Whole Wheat with Bananas pancakes, and I will never get anything other than those at IHOP ever again. Fat, fluffy, warm, golden, and maple syrup. What more could a girl ask for? 

Anyway, I've been craving pancakes these past few days, but I was set on having whole wheat pancakes, and alas, we didn't have any whole wheat flour in our pantry. So, after surfing the internet for about forty minutes last night, I finally came across a series of healthy pancake recipes that I combined to make my own:

Blueberry Four Grain Pancakes

Yields 6-8 pancakes (4"-6" in diameter each)

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
• 1/4 cup ground chia seed*
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 large egg (or 2 egg whites)
• 1 cup milk**
• 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar (or light brown)
• 1/3 cup original applesauce
• Blueberries (optional)***

*Some websites I read said chia seeds are a whole-grain, and others said they aren't. Regardless, chia seeds are filled with nutritional benefits, including healthy omega-3 fatty acids, carbohydrates, protein, fiber, antioxidants, and calcium. So, whether or not you call these pancakes Three Grain or Four Grain, they're still really healthy for pancakes.

**I used plain almond milk, but I'm sure any other milk would work fine. 

***Although the blueberries are optional, the quinoa flavor is strong, and I thought the blueberries helped mask the taste (although I don't mind the taste of quinoa). 

Here's where my skills in the kitchen fail: following directions. All pancake recipes I read online said to toss together all the dry ingredients first. Next, whisk the wet ingredients (in this case, applesauce, milk, and egg) in a separate bowl. Then, stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Honestly, I just combined them all at once in a big bowl. I used a whisk to break up the egg, and then a wooden spoon to stir it all together. It still turned out fine, but if I were to do it again, I probably would separate the ingredients.

One tip I did read, though, was to be careful not to overmix the batter. Stir until all the ingredients are just combined. Otherwise, the pancakes will be tough and dense. 

Heat a griddle or skillet over medium heat. Coat with cooking spray, oil or butter. I used an ice cream scooper to drop the batter on the skillet, which made about 4" pancakes. I liked this size because it meant I could stack more pancakes :) 

Wait until bubbles begin to form in the center of the pancake, and then flip. Cook until the other side is golden brown. Coat your griddle or skillet before every pancake or batch of pancakes. 

Stack and serve with maple syrup! 

And now, three and a half hours after I have woken up, I return to clean my room. At least it's almost lunch time!

Gas Station Chronicles

Who knew you could find an entire life in gas station merchandise? (*Note that "you" is ambiguous in the story.) 

"I love how gas stations arrange their merchandise," my friend Lee said. "In just one aisle you can find cards, condoms and painkillers."

I laughed. "It kind of tells a story. You spark some magic with the cards. That's why you need the condoms."

"Then your girlfriend breaks up with you. That's why you need the painkillers," my friend Ella chimed in.

"And here you have birthday candles. That's what you get for buying shitty gas station condoms," Lee said.

We turned down the next aisle: pet food. I held up a bag of Kibbles & Bits and Meow Mix. "Now that you have the kid, the next step is the pet."

"Or maybe you can no longer afford real food," Ella proposed.

I sighed. "So now your life is really going downhill. Looks like you better stock up on trash bags. You're homeless."

"BUT then you get a job as a mechanic," she said, holding up a bottle of WD-40.

"Phew. So now your life is turning back around."

"And that brings us to the snack aisle," Lee said. "Just in time to host a football game with your friends."

Too bad the Patriots lost to the Broncos.

Next time you're bored, stop by a gas station. Just a tip: Cumberland Farms sells any size beverage for just 99¢, 24/7. 

Berry Tart Lemonade

Sophomore year...check. Driver's test...check. Summer, here I come!

It's amazing how you don't realize how stressful something is until it's over. As I finished my final homework assignment of the year Thursday night, I felt my body breathe a sigh of relief. But the real relief didn't come until 6:08 this morning, as I pulled out of the RMV...as a newly licensed driver. Hopefully my nights will no longer be filled with overturned vehicles and failure stamps (I actually don't even think they use those on road tests).

I took a leisurely lunch today. I had leftovers from last night's dinner––an avocado BLT flatbread with sweet potato fries. I even took the time to heat up my sandwich and fries in the oven, which is much more satisfactory than the microwave. The fries were certainly less soggy than they would've been if I microwaved them.

But the 77ºF weather and the sun made me crave something more: lemonade. But not the powdered lemonade or even the frozen lemonade; I wanted real, homemade lemonade.

Alas, I only had one and a half lemons and no lemon squeezer. I squeezed the lemons with my hands and got enough juice for one very tart sip. It was time to open the freezer, open the fridge, open all the cupboard doors, and see what I could find.

In the end, I was able to make one tall glass of something I call Berry Tart Lemonade. See the recipe below!

Berry Tart Lemonade (Makes 1 Serving)

1 1/2 lemons, squeezed
1 kiwi, peeled
1/2 cup - 1 cup of frozen berries
Honey
Lemon water (or regular water)

Microwave the frozen berries in a bowl for 90 seconds. This extracts the juices. Blend with the squeezed lemons and peeled kiwi. The lemonade will be very tart. To water it down, gradually add water. (I happened to have a pitcher of lemon water in the fridge, but plain water will do fine.) Add honey for a sweetener. Pour in a glass with ice cubes and taste summer with every sip.

I decorated the glass with a strawberry from our garden. I tried to show its better side in the earlier pictures.

I don't know if you can see it, but a lot of the pulp and seeds floated to the top, leaving the bottom a bit more tart. The separation reminded me of the science experiment with vinegar and oil.

The last thing to do before I ate was set the table. I wiped the glass table on the porch clean of pollen, set a placemat, and set the table for one. I even set out a cloth napkin. Sunscreen applied and sunglasses on, I pulled in my chair and closed my eyes as I savored the taste of summer right around the corner. 

Happy (almost) summer, everyone!

The Price We Pay

Criss-cross applesauce on a car seat, the back reclined a little more forward than what is naturally comfortable. Pillow and Biology SAT II text book on my lap, highlighter and pencil in hand as I attempt to make use of this two and a half hour car ride. After I finish reading I’ll probably take a nap. I can't reach any of my other homework. The rest of it is under a king-sized headboard. My water bottle is somewhere underneath the king-sized mattress. We can’t even see out the back window. 

(It reminds me of the long road trips my family used to take, with suitcases stacked in the middle, separating my brother and I. If we tolerated each other that day, we would try and find a hole where we could pass notes or talk. Otherwise we ignored each other and were grateful for the physical barrier between us.)

This is the price we pay for a $50 king-sized bed and mattress. After the countless Craig’s list trips I’ve been dragged along on–an antique lamp table, a bookshelf, an old record machine–I don’t think I will ever buy anything new again. How could I? I’ll willingly crouch myself in the back of a car any day before I dish out a thousand dollars for a bed. 

Christmas Baking

Chocolate. What a wonderful way to start the morning. Baking. What an even more wonderful way to begin. 

The past two weeks have been filled with Christmas baking in both my house and my grandparent's (who have an in-law with us). Between the two houses, there has been lots of delicious treats to share and sample. My grandma's glazed pecans and walnuts have always been a favorite of mine. She was kind enough to give me my own personal stash this year, but I ate it all in one sitting while up late doing homework. In fact, I think it was all the sweets that kept me going last week, what with all the end-of-semester project work. I had chocolate saltine bark and homemade granola and chocolate pretzel M&M wreaths and lots of dark chocolate M&Ms. Friday at school everyone was in a particularly cheerful mood. Many people carried tins of fudge and homemade cookies and other goodies that they were eager to share with their friends or whoever they saw in the hallway. What's the fun of food if you can't share it? Soo I have two Christmas recipes to share with you today!

The first is super easy:

Chocolate Cherry Mice 

These things are almost too cute to eat! But then you eat one...and they're too good not to eat. 

Ingredients

Hershey kisses (for the head)

Maraschino cherries with stems

Slivered almonds (for the ears)

Food coloring (for eyes)

Chocolate chips OR more Hershey kisses

1. Place the maraschino cherries on a paper towel and dry them with another paper towel. This will make the chocolate stick easier. *If some of the cherries don't have stems, DON'T THROW THEM AWAY. There is a way to make them work! All it takes is a little surgery :) *

2. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil to avoid sticking.

3. Melt the chocolate chips or Hershey kisses in the microwave. My grandma and I melted Hershey kisses, and we melted them for 30 seconds, stirred them, and then put them back in the microwave for another 30 seconds.

4. Dip the cherry in the melted chocolate. Dip the base of another Hershey kiss in the melted chocolate, and attach two slivered almonds for the ears. Stick the head to the chocolate-dipped cherry. There's your mouse!

5. If you have a tailless mouse, have no fear! Take a toothpick or anything sharp and just poke a little hole in its bum (sorry, Mousie!). Dip the tip of the cherry stem in chocolate, and just stick it in there! Nothing a little rectum surgery can't fix.

6. Let the mice harden in the fridge. Later, use food coloring to give them eyes. (All we had was green, black and red food coloring, and the red kind of freaked me out, so I used green. Looking back, red would've been really cute for the nose.)

Here's a close-up!

Oh, and the white blocks the mice are surrounding in the first picture are hunks of white chocolate. Don't they look like cheese???

Alrighty, now moving on to Recipe #2. This one is a bit more involved, but it's well worth it: Coconut Key Lime Cake.

Last weekend, my family and I went to DC, and we had this amazing coconut key lime cake. Now I'm picky when it comes to cake, but this cake was GOOD. So, I decided to try and replicate it for my family for Christmas! The only problem was, I didn't want to let them know I was making it. Luckily, Grandma's kitchen is always open.

Coconut Key-Lime Cake 
A key-lime cake frosted with coconut whipped cream

Because I was trying to replicate the recipe at the restaurant, I didn't follow much of a recipe for this cake. But here are the basic steps I followed.

Key-Lime Cake:

For the cake, I just used a Pillsbury white cake mix, but any brand will do. If you're feeling ambitious, you can make it from scratch, but I'm still somewhat of an amateur at baking, so I figured I would start slow. For the key-lime tang, I used an entire 4 1/2 fluid oz container of lime juice, and two grated limes. I grated each lime entirely, skin and all (my hands were tired!). When it comes to how much to use, the best thing you can do is go by taste. Next time, I think I might do less limes, because the cake was really dense and the lime was a bit overpowering. It's all trial and error!

I made this cake in two layers, so after mixing the batter, I separated it into two 8x8 circular cake tins (to avoid sticking, make sure you oil the cake tins well before pouring in the batter), and baked them for approximately 30 minutes at 350ºF. You'll know they're done when you stick a fork in and it comes out clean.

Coconut Whipped Cream:

Before I even knew I wanted to make this cake, I had bought a Coconut Cream Pie dessert mix from a craft fair, which I mixed with 16 fluid oz of homemade whipped cream. (For the whipped cream, all you need is whipping cream and an electric mixer, with vanilla and sugar to taste. Beat the cream until it peaks.) But I'm sure you can just use a recipe for coconut cream pie for the frosting. 

Decorating:

Allow the cakes to cool for a minimum of 30 minutes after you take them out of the oven. While it's cooling, cut thin slices of fruit to layer in the middle. I used strawberries and kiwis. 

Once cool, take one cake and flip it onto whatever you will be presenting the cake on. (I used a glass plate.) Frost it with a layer of the coconut whipped cream. 

Arrange your fruit. 

Apply another layer of coconut whipped cream and fruit, and top it off with a third layer of the whipped cream. Sandwich the filling with the other cake.

Use the rest of the whipped cream to frost the cake. Then go to town with the decorating! I sprinkled coconut flakes around the cake, and used the leftover strawberries and kiwi to add some color. Then, I had a little photo shoot :) 

Do you have any special holiday recipes? There's no reason why I couldn't make the glazed pecans or the mice or any of the other recipes year-round, but then they wouldn't be as special. It's nice to have something to look forward to. 

Here's wishing you all a safe and happy holiday season! 

Megan xo

A Pinch of Sunshine: T.A.C.

Avocado...guacamole, kale salad, veggie burger and...smoothie? Here's a fun exercise. Think of a word––a food, a color, a place, anything––and list whatever comes to mind when you think of that word. Don't think...just go! What do you come up with?

I have a recipe that I haven't found on some other blog or health magazine. Every time I think I have some "ingenious" recipe idea and whip out my phone to take pictures for a blog post, I am disappointed to find that someone not only has my same idea, but that they make it better. But alas, as far as I know, this recipe is mine! It's really not that ingenious, and someone out there most likely has tried something either exactly the same or very similar, but I haven't read about it, and I quite frankly don't feel like trying to find out!

When I was in San Diego, I tried a very peculiar smoothie: an avocado and honey smoothie. That's it. Avocado, milk, and honey. Avocado-girl as a I am, I had to try it, but it was certainly an acquired taste. It didn't have much flavor. I'll admit I was a bit disappointed at first, especially as I looked at my brother beside me with his chocolate shake. But I wanted to like it; it had avocados! It was a smoothie that required concentration. I had to think about what I was tasting with every sip, and I found that the more I drank, the more I liked it. Alas, I didn't find this out until near the end of the smoothie. So, before the end of the trip, I made sure I made another stop by the little café to give it another go.

While on my school end-of-the-year trip, my friend decided to take advantage of all the extra avocados we had (That's kind of a strange sentence...how many people have you ever heard say they have "extra avocados?") and make an avocado smoothie. We looked up recipes, and found one that used avocado, vanilla yogurt, and milk. I was thrilled to report that our smoothie did the one back in San Diego justice. As I said, it's an acquired taste, and no one else on the trip seemed to appreciate the taste. So, it was up to my mom (who chaperoned the trip), my friend and me to drink 12 servings worth of avocado smoothie...no problemo!

But, it still wasn't my own. However, I am proud to report that with the help of a few bonus ingredients, I have created a spin-off of the smoothie that adds additional health benefits while hardly impacting the flavor. Kale––a dark, leafy green–– is known as one of the healthiest vegetables, and is extremely rich in antioxidant vitamins A, C, and K, and high in iron. Follow the links below to learn more nutritional faces about the ingredients.

T.A.C.(Take A Chance)

You know the saying: "Don't judge a book by its cover." Well, don't judge a smoothie by its color! It will be green! But it should be a lighter, pale green. Personally, I think it's a pretty smoothie! 

Two 16oz. servings:

• 2 avocados
• Low-fat milk (can substitute for coconut milk, rice milk, etc.)
• 1 banana
• Kale
• Plain yogurt*
• Honey (can substitute for another sweetener, like agave or vanilla. Or, you can replace plain yogurt with vanilla yogurt.)

*Note: The yogurt gives the smoothie a frothier and smoother texture, as do nut butters. My mom doesn't tend to like the consistency of smoothies with yogurt or nut butter, so feel free to omit the yogurt. I like it because it adds additional protein and other health benefits, but the smoothie is still plenty healthy without it. If omitting the yogurt, don't omit the honey or substitute sweetener, as the smoothie will taste very bland.

Because everyone's taste varies, when it comes to making smoothies, it is best to prepare it by taste versus strict measuring guidelines. Some people blend ice in with their smoothies to make them colder, but I've found frozen fruits and veggies work better. (Before heading off for a run this morning, I prepared the banana and veggies and put them in the freezer. But, we were in a rush to leave the Cape, so they didn't have time to freeze fully and it was really humid, so we just added a few ice cubes.) There really is no "wrong way" to make a smoothie, but here's my recommendation for "T.A.C.": 

1) Add the avocados, banana, plain yogurt, and milk. As a rule of thumb, I usually use enough milk/liquid to cover 2/3 of the fruits/veggies. If the blender is getting stuck, add more liquid. I tend to like a thicker smoothie, but a thinner drink can easily be achieved by adding more liquid. 

2) Once you have your desired consistency, add kale and sweetener to taste. I've found the kale blends better after the rest of the ingredients have been blended. Kale can be bitter, so be careful not to add too much initially. You can always add more after!

(I wish my nails were green to match the theme.)

Something I didn't even consider as I was making this smoothie this morning was adding chia seeds. First introduced in my post "Oatmeal at Home," chia seeds are an easy way to add nutrients into your diet. Click here to learn more about the little omega-3 gold mines.

Do you have any smoothie recipes? What I love about smoothies is that there are endless recipes you can try, and they're an easy way to get in the nutrients you need to get through the day. 

Happy Cooking!

A Pinch of Sunshine: Banana Bites

One of the things I love most about summer is all the free time is provides. Time to write, time to run, time to bike, time to talk, time to hang out with friends and family, time to eat, and, of course, time to cook. Of course, throughout the course of the school year, I do write and run and bike and talk and hang out with my friends and eat (obviously), but the key word is time. Summer allows us to relax and enjoy life's pleasures. No more running in the parking lot under the street lights, no more math class conversations interrupted every two minutes by a new word problem, no more eating in the car on the way to the bus stop.

With the freedom of summer and time stretched out in front of me like a wide open grass field, I've taken the time to experiment in the kitchen a bit lately. By no means are my experiments daring or particularly innovative. My experiments typically tend to lean more toward styling foods, adding an extra ingredient for health, or combining my favorite recipes.

What's the fun in cooking, though, if you have no one to share it with? That's why this summer, I will be posting any fun recipes I find/create in a series called, "A Pinch of Sunshine." A pinch of sunshine will be sure to liven up any recipe, right???

Today's recipe is a spin-off of a recipe I found on the blog Chocolate-Covered Katie, which I've featured before on my blog in my post "Inspired by Oatmeal." As a recap or for newer readers, Chocolate-Covered Katie is, as blogger Katie describes it, "the healthy dessert blog," where she finds healthy ingredient substitutions to make those treats that may test our self-restraint. Her post was titled "Breakfast Banana Pops," which are essentially frozen banana popsicles. With the streak of hot weather we had these past couple of days, I was desperate for a cool and healthy treat.

In her recipe, she had the bananas cut in half and stuck on popsicle sticks. However, my family and I found that we liked them better off the stick and bite-sized. The ingredients required and how to make them are primarily the same, though. I'm calling them "Banana Bites."


Banana Bites

The primary ingredient, as you may have guessed, is bananas. To make the Banana Bites, I cut a banana into fourths. Our bananas were huge, so these were more like three-bite banana bites. Feel free to split the banana however you like, but the bites should be big enough so you can roll them in whatever toppings you decide. 

After you've cut the bananas, you need to roll them in some sort of coating so the toppings will stick. Pictured above is a banana rolled in peanut butter. I melted the peanut butter for 30 seconds in the microwave to make it soupier so it was easier to roll the banana.  Pictured below is a banana rolled in plain yogurt. I'm curious to try rolling a banana in honey, melted Nutella, or just plain chocolate. Who am I kidding? How can anything be "just plain chocolate?"

After you have your coating, here comes the fun part: toppings! The toppings can be anything from granola to Jimmies to slivered almonds. In Spanish, we say "a gusto," which means "to your liking." I would recommend just opening your cabinet and seeing what you have! Whatever toppings you choose, they should be small and flat enough that they will stick to the banana. (Chocolate-Covered Katie gave the idea of crushed chocolate chip cookies.)

This weekend, I tried:

• Plain yogurt, slivered almonds, granola, drizzled honey
• Plain yogurt, granola
• Plain yogurt, granola, drizzled chocolate
• Plain yogurt, crushed gingersnaps
• Plain yogurt, Multi-Grain Cheerios

Then my mom thought of peanut butter, which I rolled in slivered almonds. How could I not have thought of that?! 

I wasn't a fan of the Cheerios, because they got kind of soggy in the freezer. My vote would go for the plain yogurt, slivered almonds, granola, and drizzled honey, and the peanut butter and slivered almonds. Next batch I make, I'm going to try softening strawberries or blueberries and rolling the Banana Bites in that. As soon as we get more shredded coconut, I'm going to try chocolate-coated with shredded coconut (another idea of my mom's...her sweet tooth is ingenious). You really can't go wrong with this recipe!

Pour your toppings into a shallow dish or plate, and roll the banana. Place a sheet of wax paper or tinfoil on a tray or plate, arrange your Banana Bites, and place in the freezer. The bananas take a good 3-4 hours to freeze, so I've been making them the night before and letting them freeze overnight. Because they're frozen, you don't have to worry about them going bad, but they might get a little freezer-burned if they're in there for an extended period of time. 

Enjoy with a pinch of sunshine!

I would love to hear some of your favorite spin-offs of this recipe. Experiment and go to town with different toppings and coatings, and please comment with some of your favorites. I'm always looking for new ideas to try. Happy experimenting!

Inspired by Oatmeal

This post is inspired by a blog inspired by another blog. The blog I was directly inspired by is The Magpie's Fancy by Gigi Thibodeau, who I can always count on for a post filled with something happy and beautiful: a new recipe, a walk in the woods, a beautiful free write, all of which are always accompanied by beautiful photographs. (Wow, have I used the word "beautiful" enough?) Yesterday, Gigi's post was inspired by another blogger by the name of Katie, author of Chocolate-Covered Katie, a healthy dessert blog. She blogged about one of Katie's oatmeal recipes called Peanut Butter Breakfast Pudding, which, I'm in agreement with Gigi, combines all of my favorite foods: oatmeal, peanut butter, bananas, and chocolate (which is optional but I will definitely try). Oatmeal and peanut butter especially are my two staple foods. I have them for breakfast at least five mornings a week, and they never fail to jumpstart my day. Usually I just have a bowl of oatmeal and slice of peanut butter toast on the side, but I've never figured out a way to combine them before. It's a crazy dream come true! Between Katie's ingenious recipe and Gigi's delicious photographs, I think I know what I'm making for dinner tonight.

So, this post is indirectly inspired by Katie of Chocolate-Covered Katie. What I love about her blog is that she doesn't only supply amazing recipes, but she also blogs about health, and how we shouldn't feel obligated to eat or not eat something because it's "healthier." She blogs about listening to your cravings, but finding healthy alternatives for them, too. Why make yourself miserable by depriving yourself of your favorite foods? What good are you doing?

Personally, I  know food makes me happy. No matter how terrible of a day I could be having, a dish of my favorite ice cream or a Reese's peanut butter cup (the one candy I always mark "Off-Limits" in my Halloween bag) can brighten my day. They always say "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach." Well, I think my stomach is the gateway to my heart, too! This past week being school vacation, I had the opportunity to make myself breakfast more than usual. I love the mornings I can wake up leisurely and prepare breakfast. It always sets the mood for a happier and fuller day. I hate the mornings when I'm rushing out the door to catch the bus and have to gobble up my breakfast. I can't enjoy it. My brother always comments on how slow I eat, but it's because I don't want it to be over! Mealtimes are by far my favorite times of the day. When they come around, I want to savor every. last. bite.

In talking about food, I will admit that I can be very picky. Sure, I'll eat anything and I love most foods, but I do have a thing for the quality of a food. In my eyes, presentation is key. It doesn't matter if all I'm having for breakfast is a bowl of cereal. Just putting it in a special bowl and taking the extra time to slice up a banana on top makes it all the more appealing and all the more delicious for me. It's a treat for myself. The same way you may put on makeup sometimes, even if you're just lounging around the house all day; you're dressing up for yourself.

If you read my post about art class , then this is not the first time you have heard me say that I wouldn't consider myself a particularly artfully-inclined person. I love art and I wish when I was bored in class I could think of something other than a heart to doodle in my notebook, but alas I was not blessed with such a gift. I do love to decorate though, and this love for decoration comes out in my love for cooking and, to bring this post full-circle, my love for oatmeal.

What I love about oatmeal is that it never comes out the same and there are so many different ways to play with it. Decorate it. Eat it! Chocolate-Covered Katie has over sixteen different oatmeal recipes and tips that make me want to eat oatmeal for the next sixteen meals. In fact, as I was drooling over Katie's recipes this morning, I myself was enjoying none-other-than the comfort of a self-prepared bowl of old-fashioned oatmeal and a slice of peanut butter toast. In making the oatmeal, I couldn't help myself getting fancy with the toppings. 

Like how Chocolate-Covered Katie combined her favorite foods to make Peanut Butter Breakfast Pudding, two years ago my mom combined two of her favorite breakfast foods, yogurt and oatmeal. Old-fashioned oatmeal with a yogurt top-hat.

To make the oatmeal, all you need is rolled oats (approx. 1/2 cup per serving). We prefer milk as the base because it makes it extra creamy. Water works fine too, or even a combination of the two. As a general rule, I usually put in a little less than double the amount of liquid as we do oats because I like a thicker oatmeal. (So if you use 1/2c of rolled oats, pour in about 1c of milk or water.) It all depends on how thick or liquidy you like your oatmeal. Pour your milk/water and oats into a pot and stir on medium-heat until the oats absorb the liquid.

You can use whatever yogurt you want for the top hat. I always put on a dollop of plain yogurt because I like to leave the flavoring job to the accessories! Because now, here comes the fun part. Accessorizing!

For my oatmeal this morning, I sliced up half a banana and one fat strawberry. Then I sprinkled a little granola to add an extra crunch, and to top it off, I made an almond flower with a dried blueberry for the middle. If you're like me and love texture in your food, you will love this recipe. The smoothness and coolness of the yogurt contrasts wonderfully with the warm and hearty oats. The fruit gives you something to chew, and the almonds and granola add a nice crunch. It's the cherry on top.

Sometimes when I make oatmeal I drizzle a little honey or maple syrup if I'm in the mood for something a little sweeter. The best part about oatmeal is that the recipe all depends on your personal cravings. It is a food designed for YOU! 

Well I could write about oatmeal (and food in general) forever, but alas I must pull myself away to finish up homework before school tomorrow. Inspired by Gigi and Katie, I will certainly be blogging more about food in the future!

Happy Experimenting,

Megan ;)

P.S. I apologize for the quality of the images. I think investing in a digital camera might be a wise idea, especially because I love what pictures can do to a post...they really make it come to life! Until then, I guess that's what the effects in iPhoto are for!

Newspaper Nails

When I was at my friend's house over the weekend, I came across a new kind of nail art...newspaper nails! You don't need to go out and buy any fancy nail polish or stickers or gems; in fact, you should be able to find all of the necessary materials around your house! What I love most about these nails is that they're unique and subtle. They don't jump out an blink red lights. But, they are intriguing enough that someone may say, "Hey, what's that?" So, when my friend from Tennessee came over yesterday, I thought I'd give it a try! Here's the run-down of how to glam up your nails with this scholarly new twist!


The supplies you need are really simple:

• base coat & top coat (We forgot to use a base coat, and it still turned out alright. However, a base coat may produce better results.
• light color nail polish (white or cream works best)
• newspaper
• scissors
• rubbing alcohol
• small glass dish/container
• Optional: 
• cotton balls
• Q-tips
• nail file, clippers, etc.

First, above all things, cut up your newspaper! Small, rectangular shapes work best. Don't cut them to fit your nail; they should be slightly bigger. You'll need a minimum of 10, but cut out more just in case. Feel free to search for fun fonts or small graphics that you like (like a star), but make sure it's black text on a white background. Also, as we learned, it is a waste of time to search for specific words that you want to appear on your nails because 1) They'll come out backwards and 2) They most likely won't all fit. Plus, the surprises are always the best!

Now comes the painting! If you're feeling fancy, take out your cute polka-dot nail file or clippers and shape your nails as you desire! Then, follow this brief video tutorial for instructions on painting: 

Here are some tips we discovered while painting our nails that they don't include in the video:

1. Use a cotton ball to press the newspaper on your nail. This will apply more pressure. Hold for 30-40 seconds.
2. The results come out best when you press the newspaper on your nails so the text is in a linear line.
3. In the video, they say to use gray nail polish. However, any light color nail polish will work. White, creams, grays, etc.

It may take a couple tries to master, but once you get it down, the result is really satisfying! Have fun!

Sweet Dreams,

Megan ;)

When You're Bored...

So here's that Play-Doh post I promised you a few days ago! The recipe is really easy and a lot of fun to make! Plus, once you're done, you get to play with it! The fun never ends!

First, gather your ingredients. These are all ingredients that you can most likely find around your house (perhaps with the exception of "Cream of Tartar." Before I made Play-Doh, I would have guessed it was something to do with Tartar sauce. Apparently it helps with the elasticity of the Play-Doh, but we didn't have any in my house and it still worked fine.)

   

     1 c. flour (can be substituted for corn starch)

1 c. water

1/2 c. salt

1 tsp. oil

2 tsp. cream of tartar

Food coloring (opt.)

(Adjust the quantities of each ingredient based on how much Play-Doh you want. The recipe above probably makes about the equivalent of one container of Play-Doh.)

With the exception of the food coloring, mix together all these ingredients in a pot and stir over medium heat. Stir until the Play-Doh resembles mashed potatoes; it should be sticky and thick. Let cool.

Now comes the fun part, and that's the food coloring. There are multiple ways you could do this. However, if you don't mind getting your hands dirty, then I would recommend kneading in the dye, just because it's a whole lot more fun! Now, my friend and I didn't have any food coloring available, but we did have blueberries!

So, we substituted the food colored by heating up blueberries in the microwave (you could also blend them) to get all the juice out, and then rolled it in the juice as if we were making a snowman. Then, we really kneaded the dough. Let it ooze between your fingers. Roll it, twist it, smooth it, pound it, shape it, have fun with it! While mixing in the dye, if you're finding the dough to be too sticky, you can add more flour/corn starch.

After the dough is fully dyed, either place it in a plastic container or seal it in a Zip-Loc bag. Keep refridgerated. Enjoy your homemade Play-Doh!

Sweet Dreams,

Megan ;)