Foodie

Hi everyone!

I know it has been a while since I have posted, but I got slammed at school this week.  I learned a few very valuable lessons though, including the fact that I need to work harder.  That is okay though, live and learn.  I have been eating a lot of good food lately that I thought I would share with you!

First, I made "spaghetti" and meatballs last week.  It was fantastic!  I added 9 frozen turkey meatballs to a pot with tomato sauce, and heated for 20 minutes.  I then made 1/2 a box of pasta.  I used elbows because I had half a box leftover, but you can use your favorite kind!  Dish the food out into three portions.  I then mixed in a big pinch of mozzarella, mild cheddar, and Parmesan cheese.  It was fantastic!  I also suggest a small side of bread to mop up any extra tomato sauce :)

Next are dumplings from Marco and Luca.  They are supposed to be the best dumplings around, however I was very disappointed to learn that they had a very small menu, only ~6 choices.  The noodles were all pre-made and the dumplings were store-bought and frozen.  However, I am glad I tried them and they were pretty yummy.  The sauce was, unfortunately, spicy and so my mouth was on fire by the end of lunch.

Next, are the Afghan kebabs that I got with my friend Beth for completing a question-set we had due Friday at midnight.  We had this terribly difficult paper to read for school this week; it took ~1 to read, ~5 hours to understand, and ~5 hours to complete the questions.  Anyways, we celebrated with chicken, a veggie filled-turnover, bread, and vino.

That's all for now! Another post on food to come shortly :)

Addicted to Coffee

The time has finally come where I join the millions of Americans who are addicted to coffee.  It only took me until my third year of college to drink coffee, and my first year of grad school to become addicted.  I will not leave my apartment weekday morning without my cup of coffee.  Some days all I need is half a cup before I feel jittery, other days I need the whole cup.  It is amazing how only a little amount of coffee can affect me...
I never thought I would see this day-- I can't believe I am a coffee addict now.  Lets hope I can keep it at one cup a day!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins

I made the most wonderful muffins today!  In fact, I made a healthy version of Handle the Heats Ultimate Muffins.  I strongly suggest making these.  If you do not like peanut butter, than you can take the peanut butter out of the recipe.  Additionally, if you do not want to add the protein powder, use 2 cups of flour.

1 1/3 cup flour

1 scoop (1/3 cup) protein powder

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1 cup (low-fat) buttermilk

1/4 cup applesauce

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup chocolate chips and ~1/4 cup for the top

1/2 cup creamy, natural peanut butter

Mix together the buttermilk, applesauce, egg, and vanilla.  In a bowl, add the sugars, flour, protein powder, and baking powder.  I added the peanut butter to the dry ingredients (however it is probably better to add it to the wet ones).  Mix the wet ingredients and add it to the dry ones.  Stir until combined.  Add in the chocolate chips.

Divide the batter into 12 muffin tin cups.  Add 5-6 chocolate chips to the top each of muffin.  Bake at 450 for 5 minutes, then decrease the temperature to 400.  Bake for an additional 8-10 minutes, until golden brown.

These muffins are absolutely amazing, and are a definite make again.

Nutrition per cupcake:

223 calories

6.4 g protein

8.5 g fat

20 g sugar

32 g carbohydrates

1.1 g fiber

(I have the full macromolecule break-down..let me know if you want it!)