It's Ugly Sweater Season!

I'm going to an ugly Christmas sweater party tomorrow, look what I've cooked up!  You probably shouldn't eat it, but it still is tasty....

Happy Holidays!

Oh, you want directions?  Seems pretty obvs to me, but take a sweater you are ok with sacrificing to the ugly sweater gods  (this was my favorite sweater until I spilled bleach on it at work, but for some reason never threw it away, it's like destiny, huh) get some tinsel garland and little ornaments (I got mine at Target, they had a really good selection and also had battery operated lights if you wanna be extra fancy), put sweater on, make tree outline with pins (do not pin sweater to tshirt underneath....) or chalk if you have it, take sweater off, arrange tinsel and stitch stitch stitch!  I started by going around the tinsel as I zigzagged it in the tree shape, but it was taking forever, so then I just did a couple stitches on the edges of the tree to hold each row in place, then went back and weaved thread in and out going up and down along the sweater to hold the middle of the lines in place, if that makes sense.  That worked much better.  Then I put the sweater back on, sewed each ornament on with a couple stitches, took sweater off and reinforced ornaments and any tinsel that looked loose.  Voila!  It's kinda heavy, but it looks great.  Can't wait for pictures with Santa tomorrow!

xoxox JDB

Apple Pie "Iced Capp", GI Joe, and Pork Chop Sandwiches

I love coffee!  And fall!  And this delicious Apple Pie Coffee from Dunkin.  It kinda reminds me of an iced capp from Tim Horton's.  I wish Dunkin had iced capps.  Like they have coffee coolattas, which are kinda similar like blended ice drink, but they aren't very coffee like.  I guess it's more like a frappuccino from Starbucks, but Starbucks sucks.

So here's how to do it.  Brew your coffee at your desired strength.  Chill if you can.  Pop it in the blender with ice, ground cinnamon, vanilla extract, sugar, and almond milk to taste.  Blend it up and enjoy.  I think that being cold brings out the apple flavor better than hot.  It's a yummy and refreshing little fall pick me up.

So do you want to take it to the next level?  Make it a "GI Joe" after my cousin GI who suggested adding spiced rum or brandy.  Good suggestions.  I'd also recommend bourbon (of course).

And you can't have a GI Joe without a Pork Chop Sandwich...

I LOVELOVELOVE that video.  The first time (and second and third and so on) I saw it I laughed so hard I cried.  I have the stupidest sense of humor.  Enjoy!

xoxox
JDB

Beer Crust Pizza!

Do you ever get a pizza craving, but you're broke, or trying to eat less crap, or you just live in the middle of nowhere so delivery is just not an option?  Do you hate waiting around for lesser organisms to gas your carbs up?  Me too!  Do you have a bottle of beer?  Of course you do, so tell the yeast to shove it and make some beer crust for your za!

Happy National Mushroom Day!

What good fortune that I found out today is a holiday AND I had a carton of mushrooms!  Hurray!  Let's cook...

"Chicken" Sandwich on Cauliflower Almond Bun with Cold Beet Salad

Tonight I worked late, and I was walking home, thinking about what to make for dinner.  I considered stopping at Walgreens and getting some HALLOWEEN PEEPS (peeps are my favorite candy) and diet Dr. Pepper, because sometimes you just want candy for dinner and peeps are totally a good choice.  They are fat free and low in calories...

Happy National Pancake Day!

Now we all know that pancakes are the poor man's waffles, but there is a time and place for everything.  There isn't much better than a crispy on the outside, moist on the inside, perfectly seasoned, appropriately sweetened waffle, but pancakes aren't bad.  They are like the less attractive cousin of the waffle.  Like waffle isn't around and you've been drinking and from a certain angle, pancake is lookin gooood!  Fluffy, soft, covered in sticky sweet syrup...  No shame.  Submitted for the approval of the Pancake Society, I call this recipe...

"Pumpkin Beer Pancakes with a Bourbon Apple Compote"

VEGETARIAN BREAKFAST SAUSAGE!!!!!!

OH MY GOD THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU WILL READ ALL DAY!!!!

...unless you eat pork, if so, just disregard this and get oinky.

Have you ever had these....

crack.

September is Better Breakfast Month!

I knew once I started this site that I had to share my quick, easy, delicious, and healthy go-to breakfast, but figured I would get to it eventually.  Then I saw this article online:

Healthy Breakfast Ideas: What 5 Vegan Celebrities Eat In The Morning

And I thought oh god that's a lot of crap, don't eat soy for breakfast!  What is wrong with you people!  So I knew I had to get working on this post.  So the past two times I made my special breakfast I took pics.  Then today at the end of the Hungry Girl email it said that September is Better Breakfast Month, so it was like a sign that I needed to get moving on this.  PS - sign up for Hungry Girl's emails!  Most of her recipes are too processed for me, but she has some good tips, and most importantly, she is my source of daily stupid food holidays (I love that!)

Happy National Waffle Day!

Chocolate Lover and Lemon Pie

Today is National Waffle Day!  To celebrate we went to The Sloppy Waffle in Newington Connecticut.  I had never had liege waffles before (who has time for yeast dough??) and these specialty waffles just sounded absolutely delicious and they did not disappoint!  My friend had the chocolate lover (Nutella spread, home-style whip, chocolate chips and walnuts drizzled with Oreo like cookie crumb) and I had the lemon pie (lemon spread, graham cracker crumb, home-style whip, dusted with powdered sugar).  Soooo good.  I thought they might be a little too sweet and decadent, but they were spot on and the smaller size was perfect for such an indulgence.  Large enough to be satisfied, but not so much that they have to roll you out the door (we had jean shopping to do after!  Ain't no time for a food baby!)  And the iced coffee was delicious!  If you're ever in Connecticut, I highly recommend it - I know we will definitely be back.

Zucchini Ramen Veggie Burger with Grilled Romaine

Ramen Burger: Jenny Style

When I heard about the Ramen Burger I totally wanted to try it, but I'm not going to New York just for a burger, or waiting in line, and I don't even eat meat or soy, so the real deal was out. I have perfected the soy-free, slow carb veggie burger (recipe coming soon), so I needed to tackle the ramen and the teriyaki sauce. This site was really helpful and gave me some ideas. On the way to the grocery store last night to buy the ramen, feeling a little guilty about the crap carbs and empty calories in the ramen and thought "why not zucchini noodles instead?" So I picked up some locally grown zukes and went home to find a suitable teriyaki sauce recipe. I used this Terikayi Sauce Recipe as a starting point. I had some romaine in the fridge, so grilled romaine seemed like the perfect side. Let's get to gettin!

First post, better make it worthwhile?

Nah.  Dinner: unsweetened vanilla almond milk, ice cubes, vanilla extract, brown sugar, and dark cocoa powder all blended to icy perfection.  Yum!  Sometimes the simplest things can be the most satisfying.