Trying new things

Alrighty, so this weekend there was a basketball game for our (soon to be retired) college president. I played in the pep band for that game and the women's basketball game before it. It was about 2.5 hours of playing, but we got free pizza and water! Mmmm. Free food always rocks. Nothing else monumental happened this weekend. My sister texted me and asked me what Girl scout cookies I wanted, so those will be sent soon, woohoo!

The blog for today is a bit different from my normal blog. I will be looking at a product today and discussing it instead of a recipe. I actually tried three different products by Morningstar. These products are all vegetarian and I had a coupon for them. Target.com was where I got the coupon if you are interested.

I have pictured the burgers, but I tried their corn dogs, sausages, and the burgers. I have to warn you, these don't taste "meaty" like the real thing. However, I didn't think they were awful either. Out of the three, I'd say the corn dogs were my favorite!

The sausage links would be a close second and the burgers would fall into 3rd place. I appreciated them being vegetarian because they had less calories and fat, but I thought the texture and taste of the burger was just a bit too much off for me. The link sausage texture was pretty much right on. The flavor was just like a less meat-flavor and more spices. With ketchup it was perfect. =D

The corn dogs had a similar delicious outside, and just a less powerful flavor of hot dog. I found them quite pleasant and would recommend them! If you are curious about vegetarian products, I would       recommend this brand!

Out of 5 stars, I would give Morningstar corndogs a 4/5, their sausages a 4/5, and the burgers a 2/5. The burgers just need something to make them more appealing for those of us who have eaten meat before!

Sorry for the weird spacing. I guess that comes with having three images, hahahaha. Hope you liked this post! I will try to do some more product reviews in the future! By the way... I am not trying to go vegetarian or anything... just trying to eat healthier and experimenting with different options. :)

As always...
Bon appétit!

Cookie Dough Dip

I have had an interesting day. I procrastinated on my homework, so I had to quickly finish it this morning. I stayed up late finishing my other stuff. I have been thinking about the past today. I guess with graduation stepping closer I keep reminiscing about the past. Like when I was accepted into college and my freshman year. I feel like I have been on a bit of the journey from the past. I also watched a movie called Touchback. It reminded me that I should appreciate everything I have, while I have it. I guess I have just been thinking a lot.

I have to go and reserve a room for our SFFT meeting tomorrow. I am going to then need to write up a blurb about the meeting to put in the student e-mail. I still haven't figured out how to add someone to the Blackboard. I need to ask someone about that. Classes have been alright. I had fun making the brochure for my External PR course. It was visually pleasing to me. Took a while though.

The recipe for today is one that gets better as you leave it. I recommend leaving this in the fridge overnight and then enjoying it the next day. The flavor of this changes the longer it sits. I was iffy about it yesterday, but it tastes better today. However, there still is a back taste of cream cheese. I might explore other alternatives to making a similar recipe, but this is fine for now.

Cookie Dough Dip w/ Heath Pieces (from Add a Pinch)

Ingredients:

• 1 8-oz package cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 8-oz pack of toffee bits

Instructions:

1. Cream the cream cheese and butter together. 
2. Add the other ingredients.
3. Mix well.
4. Add the Heath toffee bits. 
5. Let sit in the fridge overnight. 
6. Serve with apple slices or crackers or enjoy by the spoonful!

Easy, fast, and delicious! Just make sure it sits in the fridge overnight! Hope you enjoy!

Love it? Hate it? Want to make it? Let me know what you think with a comment below!

As always...
Bon appétit!

Simple lunch

Take a close look at these images. Yes, that was my lunch. Triscuits and cheese and an apple. The truth is, you can eat healthier just by going simple. This filled me up and I was energized for the rest of the day. I love baking and cooking, but it can be good to remember that simple food can be just as awesome!

I would say that today was a bit batty. The roses we ordered didn't arrive because the order was misplaced. We will try to sell roses at a later point in the semester I suppose. Guess it is a lesson to always order in plenty of time. The lady felt really bad and has offered a discount and some free roses. Hopefully we can get that when we order later. Nothing too exciting to report in my 3 day classes, but we worked on brochures in night class. I am nit picky about the look of my brochure, so I still have 3 panels left to do. I also have 4 different assignments that require minor editing and resubmitting. Grawr. I have a committee meeting tomorrow, so I get to have another adventure.

I supposed you could say that I am experiencing a taste of the real world, haha. I hope you all enjoy this simple and delicious post!

Love it? Hate it? Want to make it? Let me know what you think with a comment below!

As always...
Bon appétit!

Sweet Bread

I enjoyed watching the Superbowl game. It was extra special because one of the guys who graduated from my HS was playing. Pretty awesome, right? I didn't go home until Saturday because I was busy, busy, busy for most of the week. I did 3 loads of laundry and 3 loads of dishes on Friday. Crazy stuff. I enjoyed having the junk food Sunday time at home though. I just hated having to be up at 4:30 am on Monday. Yuck!

I have been running around this week trying to get stuff set up for Students for Fair Trade. My treasurer wants to quit, and my other officers don't really help. It can be quite stressful! I honestly have no idea how we are going to pull off our sale of Valentines Day roses. It should be interesting!

I am currently finishing writing my assignments for Public Relations class. We had to write up parts for a media kit. It can be frustrating at times, but I am trying to endure and just get through it. I only have the Photo Opportunity sheet left. I personally think it is going to sound stupid, but hopefully my professor will give me good feedback on how to revise it. I still have to revise my other two assignments as well. Oops. Looks like I know what I will be finishing up before class!

In other news, the people have not stopped tapping on the heating pipes. I think my eye has adjusted to awkwardly twitching every time I hear the noise. It seriously irks me.

The recipe for today wasn't meant as a bread recipe. In all honesty, it was for crescent rolls. I was just too lazy to make it into crescent rolls, so the bread was born. I personally enjoy this bread a lot. My sister loved it and my dad said it was alright. Knowing him, that means it was pretty good. The best part about this bread? You just throw the dough together, let it rise, knead it a bit, let it rise in the baking pan, and then bake it. You can even go out to do shopping and then return to take care of it. I went out to Target and the grocery store while my bread was rising. I kneaded it a bit, readied the baking dish, covered it again, and let it sit. I watched part of the superbowl while waiting and then baked it really fast. I found that the time flew! I hope you will give this recipe a chance!

Sweet Bread (adapted from Golden Crescent Rolls)

The middle was a bit under-done... oops!

Ingredients:

• 2 (.25 oz) packages of active dry yeast
• 3/4 cup warm water
• 1/2 cup of granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 3/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 4 cups all-purpose flour

Instructions:

1. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water.
2. Stir in the sugar, butter, eggs, salt, and 2 cups of flour. Beat until smooth.
3. Mix in the remaining flour until a dough forms.
4. Scrape dough from the side of the bowl and knead it.
5. Cover and let the dough rise in a warm place until double. This takes about 2 hours.
6. Punch down the dough and knead again. 
7. Prepare your baking dish or baking sheet with parchment paper or nonstick cooking spray.
8. Put the dough in the baking dish, cover, and let rise for an additional 2 hours.
9. Preheat the oven to 375 F (190 C).
10. Bake the bread for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Make sure the center is done by testing it with a toothpick.
11. Enjoy!

** If you wish to make dinner rolls, you can divide the dough up and put it in a muffin pan. Your cooking time will differ slightly. **

I love how easy it is to make this bread. Sure, it takes some time, but it is well worth it! Enjoy!

Love it? Hate it? Want to make it? Let me know what you think with a comment below!

As always...
Bon appétit!