Banana Chocolate Cornmeal Cookies

You will never believe it, Burlesquers: I watched 5 episodes of Bones last night. How is that possible? 200 minutes of sustained tv-watching?!

Okay, admittedly, I’ve been very good with my time: getting up at 6 am, at the gym by 7 am, showering and having breakfast by 8:30 am, and at school by 9:30 am. I then stay on campus til 5 or 6 and come home, and just relax! Despite having a flexible schedule, I do enjoy structuring my day like a 9-to-5 job. I am able to come home and not worry about my work (as much), which has been revolutionary for me, really. To reward myself for getting back to the gym and being so productive, why not watch an insane amount of episodes of my new favorite show?? I earned it! Plus, two of the geeky supporting characters, Angela and Hodgins, just went on their first date (I am only on Season 2), and I was beyond excited to see the episode. (I love fan-made stills and videos…they’re too funny!)

from Fanpop.com

****Side note: what is it with me and loving strange and/or geeky characters? House, Sherlock, Bones, and Castle are my favorite shows right now, and they all involve some sort of science, detective work, romance, and…..geeks. And I usually think these geeks are incredibly good looking (cough cough Castle, House, Hodgins! cough cough). Come on! Dreamy, right?

from telechimp.com

Maybe it’s because I’m in graduate school and see some of these “types” in real-life action?  Try mingling at a grad student party—the awkwardness alone makes me laugh! (Not that I’m any better….. I tend to giggle and become excitable when I’m nervous! I have to constantly work on being “serious”!)

Anyway, I wanted to enjoy a dessert with my tv craze. But I wanted something different. And I still needed to use up a Jiffy Corn mix and a banana pudding mix in my cupboard. How about putting those two together to make a fun cookie?! Behold, the absolutely delightful Banana Chocolate Cornmeal Cookie!

Banana Chocolate Cornmeal Cookies

Yum!

These cookies look and taste just like a normal cookie, except they’re made from a jiffy corn mix, which gives them an interesting texture! The pudding mix, butter, and banana kept the dough moist, and all the ingredients together made a wonderful banana chocolate cookie!  These cookies were eaten by multiple friends of mine and gone within a day. (I might have had 4 of them, too….)

I think you could do other fun combinations with this recipe, like trade out the banana for strawberries! Or even add in nuts, like a pecans. Mmmmm! Delicious! Enjoy!

(Healthy) 5 Layer Enchilada Casserole

Today was a fabulous day, Burlesquers!

I caught up with a friend of mine via Gchat who is working internationally at a law firm in Chile. Love this girl–she is another one of my “kick butt” lawyer friends.  We met, actually, after we both graduated college and were working at a local coffee shop. She was my barista trainer, and my store manager prefaced my meeting her by saying, “You’re either going to love each other or hate each other.” Looks like we loved each other, because we’ve been good friends ever since! I’ve also grown to love her parents. They’ve hosted me at Thanksgiving, invited me over for Christmas, and let me eat them out of house and home. “Have another bowl of soup, BB!” Love you!

Anyway, my friend and I today were talking about vanity, self-deprecation, and insecurities. These topics affect everyone–men, women, young, old. I do think, however, women are particularly affected by this, with social pressures mounting for women of all different races, sexualities, and classes to be “every” woman: the working woman, the mom, the emotional caretaker, the model, the vixen. It’s not the same experience for everyone, but it’s alot of pressure in general, right? And it’s particularly bad when we’re younger, isn’t it? I still remember the awful, insecure, denigrating impulses about my mind and my body that I felt sometimes when I was a teen–I’m not smart enough! My hair isn’t straight or blonde like everyone else! My body is curvy and not super skinny! I don’t feel pretty!

I remember a day (years ago) when a man I briefly dated bullied me–praying on my common insecurities of acceptance–by telling me that men will never date me because of my “feminist viewpoints and strong will”. Honestly, I still don’t even know what that means. I’m not “acceptable” as a heterosexual female because I’m strong-willed? Or because I’m a feminist? At the time I was upset, but I was over that nonsense within a week. Such antiquated statements (who says that??). I hope no one ever falls for bullying that sounds that stupid! I hate to be so clichéd, but you’ve got only one chance here, people. Time to love ourselves! And, in the immortal words of Kelly Clarkson, don’t buy into someone telling you about how it’s going to be!

Speaking of loving yourself, I vote you make some healthy and hearty Enchilada casserole tonite! One night this week, I wanted to make Enchiladas, but I didn’t want to hassle with rolling up the enchiladas and making a mess (which I tend to do). How about making an Enchilada casserole and layering the Enchilada ingredients like you would a lasagna? This dinner was alot of fun to make and too delicious not to post!

a little slice of Enchilada heaven!

the pan of enchiladas

I used low carb wheat tortillas, beans, lowfat cheese, enchilada sauce, spices, vegetables and meat to make this delicious, 5 layer filling meal!

Banana Protein Pancakes

Hey Burlesquers! I am refreshed! I am rejuvenated! Maybe it was from all those Cinnamon treats healthy eats and play time this holiday weekend? (In my dreams I’d be having fun on the beach with these fun-looking ladies!)

from “Miss Riot” blog (photographer unknown…I think this was taken at Shelburne, VT state beach?)

But, but seriously, I am feeling better, and I am now fairly certain I became sick after improving my diet, exercising, and losing a few pounds. (That probably seems contradictory, right?) I thought so too, but this ALWAYS happens to me. Every time I’ve made too drastic of lifestyle changes (even if its to a more healthy, limited diet or exercising 5 days a week), I get sick. This makes sense though. Your body is initially thrown off course by any changes (good or bad!), and your immune system lowers…hence, me getting a cold! Sigh. I can never win.

I wanted to start fresh today though, and I made a special healthy breakfast for myself. How about Banana Vanilla Protein Pancakes by PB Fingers (blogger)?

Peanut Butter Finger’s recipe (a very cute, healthy lifestyle blogger, by the way) includes oats, egg, mashed banana, protein powder, vanilla extract, and cottage cheese, which makes for a very healthy pancake! I only made slight changes: I added lots of cinnamon (of course), a smidgeon of honey, greek yogurt instead of cottage cheese, and I used oat flour instead of blended oats (she uses an immersion blender to grind the oats in her recipe).

I really liked this recipe! The “pancake” turned out moist and chewy—different from a regular pancake, but just as good and even MORE filling! Four hours later and I am still not hungry! Kind of amazing, actually. These pancakes would freeze well if you made a large batch, and if you don’t have protein powder, just substitute with an equal amount of oat flour, wheat flour, white flour, or even fiber powder. If you don’t have oat flour but would like some, you can actually make your own by grinding oats in a food processor. (Oat flour has a more mild, sweeter flavor than wheat flour.)

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Treats

You will never believe it, Burlesquers: I am sick with a slight cold! Who gets a cold in the beginning of a hot, humid summer?! Apparently I do, which explains my sluggishness (remember me attributing my tiredness to the weather in my last post??). It’s not a terrible sickness, but it’s definitely a sore throat and some congestion. Yuck. Glad I was lazy and skipped the gym the past two days. I think that would have made things worse!

Anyway, to remedy the dregs of a summer cold, I decided I wanted a cool, kid-like treat. How about Cinnamon Toast Crunch Treats to chase my blues away?! Yay!

Now, don’t get me wrong: I like rice krispie treats, just like every other kid adult around. But why not do a grown-up spin on a kids dessert, and add lots of cinnamon and chocolate chips? I wanted these to taste like faux churros! And what better way to do that than by adding cinnamon and sweetened condensed milk, which are two popular ingredients in Latin America? I made these treats using Target-brand Cinnamon Cereal, butter, marshmallows, chocolate chips, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and sweetened condensed milk. And the result is fantastic! I loved this! I hate being self-congratulatory, but these treats are much more fun and tasty than their rice-krispie treat counterpart. The cinnamon, vanilla extract, and sweetened condensed milk really give these depth and make them adult friendly! (Although, if you don’t have sweetened condensed milk, just add a few more marshmallows!). Goodbye, rice krispie treats, heeeello Cinnamon Toast Crunch Treats!

Brown Sugar and Honey Scrub

Hey all,

I’ve been jonesing for a decadent spa treatment, and I thought this scrub by Cut Out and Keep looked divine! I didn’t want to heat up the honey though (a hot scrub on a hot day? No!).  I changed the recipe a bit for a nice cool scrub for the summer. You will have enough to scrub your face and neck!

my fun spa treatment!

Brown Sugar and Honey Scrub

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of brown sugar

1/8 cup of honey

1/4 tsp milk

Directions:

In a bowl, add the sugar, and then slowly mix in the honey. Add the milk–the more milk added, the more looser consistency. Now, pat onto clean dry face and leave on for 10-20 minutes. This mixture will not harden like other masks, so watch for falling drops of honey and sugar!  After allotted time, take off scrub with a washcloth, and rinse off with tepid water. Make sure you don’t rub the honey into your hair line. (No need for a sticky updo on a sticky summer day!)

Stir-fry Beef and Tofu (with Sherry and Snow Peas)

Hey Burlesquers,

I don’t know if it’s the change in weather (humidity is now at 95%!), but I’ve become sluggish.  This California girl can never get used to East Coast weather!! I am always the coldest person in the room during winter, and my skin and hair become a hot mess during the East coast summer. Summer humidity on the east coast means my fair skin becomes dewy and more sensitive (it’s always red from being scratched), and my hair becomes a veritable furball. I also seem to become dehydrated more easily. Oh, New England. No offense to all east coast lovers, but I always miss my west coast roots more in the summers. I had lived in California all my life, and I didn’t realize how “west coast” I was until I left. (I’ve mentioned how in the first month of living in new England, multiple waiters and baristas immediately knew I wasn’t from here and would ask me where I was from. Funny, right? They always guessed the South or Midwest.)

From MagnetsForFridge.com

Anyway, in more pleasant news, I received recognition from a sorority on campus for my teaching! So sweet!  I found a fancy note, printed on official Kappa Alpha Theta stationary, in my mailbox yesterday. Inside, there was a message from the sorority recognizing my “hard work” and thanking me for my teaching–in particular, the class I taught this semester–and then it was signed by one of my students and the rest of the sorority! Cute, right? I’ve never been in a sorority, but I thought this was adorable and very sweet. (Although, I still don’t know why it’s from the whole sorority? Any sorority lovers out there who can tell me?) I am assuming people put in the names of their favorite teachers, and then get notes printed for them. Whatever it was, I was excited!

From ChangingLaynes blogspot

Okay, I’ve rambled enough: let’s talk snow peas and beef. Ron introduced me to this Beef with Snow Peas recipe from the Pioneer Woman, and we now both love it! This is a basic stirfry, although the recipes calls for snow peas and sherry, which I’d never bought before. I am so glad I did though! I love the taste of the snow peas (a change from broccoli!) and the sherry really adds alot of flavor to the stirfry.

As always, the changes: we added carrots and substituted the jasmine rice with brown rice and half the beef with tofu (to make it more heart healthy)—and you can’t tell a difference in flavor! The tofu in particular takes on the flavors of the sherry and the beef, and makes the dish more hearty and fibrous. We also use cornstarch at the end to make the sauce a bit more, well, saucy! Anyway, good eats for this yummy dish!

the stirfry

More Awards! One Lovely Blog Award and the Liebster Blog Award

Much thanks to Twistedewe and Laura of Zeelicious for thinking of me! Twistedewe (whose sweet, eclectic blog ranges from gardening advice to a Renter’s guide) nominated me for the One Lovely Blog Award, while Zeelicious (a free-lance journalist and foodie!) nominated me for  the Liebster Blog Award. Thank you so much, you two! I started this blog on a whim (one rainy sick day, to be exact), and it’s now become my favorite hobby and recipe diary! I love exchanging recipes and seeing everyone’s smart ideas (Soaking dried fruit in rum for biscotti! Turning jars into fabulous vases and cups! Making DIY decals!). I say let’s all live like queens!

 

The guidelines for accepting the One Lovely Blog award are as follows:

1. Thank the blogger who nominated you and link back to their blog in your post.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Nominate about 15 other blogs that you enjoy.
4. Let the nominees know that you chose them.

I am actually combining both awards and will award 5 Lovely blogs at the end of my 7 things.

7 Things About Myself:

1) Right now I am sore! I’ve been getting back in shape, which means I’ve been hitting the gym 3-5 times a week. And when I “hit the gym,” I am not talking about some wimpy 15 minute workout on the elliptical. I literally TRAIN. For 45 minutes to an hour, I do sprints, weight-lifting, stair-climbing, and more. My (amateur) workouts are not for the faint of heart!!

2) I have curvy figure (small waist, larger chest and hips), but I am also surprisingly naturally athletic. When I was younger, I used to swim in the summers for a regional swim team, I won a couple of awards for 5ks, and I was on Track and Field for a year. I am not as fit as I once was (because my job of reading and writing means sitting at a desk all day), but I feel myself getting back into shape (kind of?) now that I’ve started working out.

3) I’ve downloaded some great new music for inspiration while at the gym. My favorites? ‘Talk that Talk” by Rihanna and “Heartbroken” by Karmin!

4) I finally finished my 1,000 word encyclopedia entry on “The Gilded Age” that I’ve been contracted to write. I am happy with it! I will post it later after it has been edited by the publishing company!

5) I have a problem saying no to sweets. I definitely didn’t make it through that two-week challenge Ron dared me to do. What is wrong with me?! Apparently my inner demons are cake, cookies, and ice cream.

6) I was out last night with some friends, and our very funny, friendly waitress gave us all different nicknames: Little Red Riding Hood (my friend was wearing a red jacket, I think?), Beefcake (because my friend is a hunky beefcake), Jill Scott (because my friend has great hair and style, like Scott), and “Deb” or Blondie, as in I look like Deborah Harry of Blondie. WTF? I’m thinking it’s because my hair is lighter, my face is rounder, and I tend to wear bright lipstick, maybe? I have no idea.

7) My newest tv obsession is Bones.  Hot d*mn, David Boreanaz is good-looking. And I happen to love detective/crime fictions, both in print and on tv. (Remember my love for Sherlock?)

My chosen blogs for the One Lovely Blog Award:

Zeelicious

the Smiley Soyabean

The Vagabond Baker

Baker Bettie

The Little Loaf

Leek, Bacon, and Goat Cheese Quiche (with a Honey Oat Crumb crust)

Hey all you fellas and gals!

I have great news: my honey Ron just went in for a physical today, and he came out with a clean bill of health! He had experienced some health issues before we started dating, and after that he decided to try to change his lifestyle (because who wants to take medication and feel crummy?). It also didn’t help that I may or may not have had (unintentional) mini-freakouts about him feeling okay. Anyway, in 6 months, Ron has lowered his blood pressure!  I am so proud of him! Love you, Ron!

Pin Up by Kimberly Crick

In other news, I made my first quiche! As you all know, Ron and I are budgeting our money. Because of our upcoming expenses (moving), we’ve decided to go extra “budget gourmet” in terms of cooking. This means shopping food sales! Eating less extravagant meals! This also means eating up ALL the things in our freezer–less waste and less to move! For dinner, I wanted to use up some my leftovers, which happened to be four eggs, goat cheese, portabella mushrooms, frozen leeks, and my Honey Oat Bread. What better way to use up eggs than for a quiche?

Quiche!

Quiche is a delicious, easy to cook (and easy to eat) meal. You simply whip up eggs with some fun ingredients, milk, cream, and cheese, and you have dinner! However, I didn’t want to spend a ton of time on a crust. How about a simple bread crumb and butter base for a crustless quiche? I don’t need anything fancy—this is just a quiche for myself and Ron! And I know my Honey Oat Bread will taste great with the sweet goat cheese.

Honey Oat Quick Bread

Today was a much needed bake day. Ron and I were stressing a bit about money and our move (“Can we afford this? Can we afford that? What should we do?”), and we just had a much needed “let’s break down our finances” talk. And I feel so much better!! If I could bottle up and sell “talk therapy and planning” as a cure-all, I’d be its biggest salesman. I don’t know about everyone else, but I need to talk about things. If I don’t, bad things ensue, like me being grumpy. (Or a “grumper”, as I sometimes call Ron!)

from Whereapy.com

Anyway, baking calms me down (especially if the baked good is budget-friendly and healthy). Right now, I’m on a semi “self-sustaining” recipe kick. I’ve made my own applesauce, I’ve made my own chocolate peanut butter, etc. Today was no exception. Let’s make quick bread for the week! Yay! Fun!

I’ve actually never baked bread before, but I was hankering for some Sweet Honey Oat-type bread. In California, my parents live fairly close to the Berkeley restaurant Cafe Intermezzo (right off Berkeley downtown), which sold the BEST wheat bread in the world. I’d travel an hour away (from Santa Cruz) just to buy this bread and would relish every thick, sweet slice. However, I just recently found out that Intermezzo burned down in a freak fire. NO! NO! NO! I was crushed, to say the least. Since then, I’ve decided I’d try my hand at making bread, and see if I could make a yummy alternative to my beloved Intermezzo bread.

How about this Honey Oat Quick Bread by Eating Well?

My first quick bread!

Pretty, right?

I love the results of this recipe. Even though I’m a first time bread baker, my loaf turned out golden brown and not too crumbly. And this looks like it took me hours to make, right? Nope! I was in and out of the kitchen in 15 minutes! And I adapted the recipe, as always, using greek yogurt (instead of regular yogurt), using oat flour and wheat flour (because that’s what I had on hand), substituting half the oil for applesauce, and sprinkling the top with Pepitas, sesame seeds, and oats (all seeds I had on hand).

I do think this recipe as a base can be improved.  The bread itself lacked the deep wheat flavor I am looking for—next time I will use all whole wheat flour (instead of half wheat and oat flours), and add molasses and more honey. Overall though, I am so excited! This bread was so easy to make! What a great recipe! I may have already tried multiple slices of the bread with raspberry jam (delicious) and butter (super delicious).

Protein Pumpkin Bars by Jamie Eason

I think we have all gathered by now that I am not a fitness guru or a health nut. I try to live a healthy-ish life, but I do have my vices (sweets being one of them). As of recently though, I’ve started trying to go to the gym. I gained alot of weight and experienced alot of stress during some big exams I took during my PhD program, and now I’d like to get a little more healthy and de-stress. (I’d also like to think of some of this as happy weight gain though, considering I’ve been now dating my current boyfriend for over a year, and we are two peas in a pod (two foodies in the kitchen?) who love good food. Which means we make alot of it. And then I eat alot of it. Groan. (Laughing.))

Anyway, my best friend (who I will talk about in detail at some point.. she is a kick-butt state lawyer) called me to tell me about this “amazing” pumpkin bar recipe I had to try. She was raving about it. She hates “health” food, but she recently lost 35 pounds for health and wellness reasons and is always looking for healthier options. She found a Pumpkin protein recipe by a body builder (Jamie Eason) she wanted me to try. I ignored her accolades about these pumpkin bars for awhile, but then one day I decided to give the bars a try. Why not? I think the best bakers and cooks are actually those that can make yummy food from healthy ingredients (because it’s pretty easy to make something taste great with butter and chocolate, right?). And I want a snack for after the gym that tastes like pumpkin pie! Yum! (My friend also eats this as a dessert and for breakfast! She added chocolate chips to her last batch to make them more dessert like.)

Pumpkin Protein bar with greek yogurt

I made a few changes to the recipe, which are in the recipe below—I used real milk instead of almond milk, I used stevia as my sugar substitute, I added a bit of honey, a touch more cinnamon, and sprinkled the top with pumpkin pie spice, and I used a different type of protein powder that I had on hand (it’s a vanilla protein powder that’s actually unsweetened and not whey).

The results…great! This tastes like a more bready (but still moist) version of the inside of a pumpkin pie! These bars are definitely worth it: low in sugar, high in fiber, high in protein, and vegetarian friendly. These are, overall, a really great healthy snack, breakfast, or even dessert that clocks in at less than 100 calories (around 70 calories).  I might tinker this recipe some more, but this is a definite winner!  I’m eating a bar right now with low fat milk. Mmmmm!