Micro-Cooking: S’mores

(originally posted on the SUNY Purchase page at www.hercampus.com)

Well, it’s certainly getting colder out there!  Back in my Jersey hometown this would be the perfect weather for a Friday night bonfire.  Living in the residence halls now, bonfires certainly aren’t allowed; but this doesn’t mean I can’t make my favorite fireside treats: s’mores!  Graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallows – students, isn’t this combination sweet music to your ears?  This recipe is so simple that you can feel free to experiment with different ingredients, too!  I’ve listed some ideas below!  Assemble and enjoy!

Micro-Cooking: Baked Apples

(originally published on my column at www.hercampus.com/purchase)

Fall is finally here!  When the leaves are changing color and the temperature is cooling down, it’s nice to warm up with a delicious snack.  Baked apples remind me of everything fall comfort food should be: they’re warm, they smell deliciously spicy and sweet, and they’re so pretty, too!  Buy some apples at your local farmers’ market (I purchased mine at the White Plains Farmers’ Market on Wednesday; Purchase students: check out the PepsiCo Farmers’ Market on Tuesdays from 11 – 6) and, with the aid of a few spices and some butter, get ready to make your dorm room smell like warm apple pie.  This treat was perfect for a cold fall night.  The recipe below makes two baked apples; you can half the recipe if you only want to make one, or you can double it to feed more of your friends!   

Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Restaurant Style!

I came home for the weekend to relax and do some work.  My boyfriend, Marc, comes home on weekends so I was glad I got to see him!  Our friends, Jess and AK, were home for the weekend, too, so we all decided to hang out.  After an unsucessful trip to Toys ‘R Us to find foam swords (oh, college kids…), we debated where we should get dinner.  Should we go out to eat or make food at home?  We finally decided it would be much cheaper to make food at home, and it certainly was: We spent about $30 on all the ingredients for dinner, whereas if we had gone out to eat, we probably would’ve each spent about $20 on drinks and entrees!  Cooking with friends is definitely a lot of fun.  We joked around and laughed a lot as we grated, chopped, and baked our way to a delicious homecooked meal.  We made what Jess calls her “birthday dinner:” chicken cutlets, broccoli, mashed potatoes, and crescent rolls.  We also decided to make a restaurant-worthy entree: Spinach and Artichoke Dip!  This dip was easy enough to make; we had to be careful not to fill up on it before dinner!

Micro-Cooking: Cherry Cobbler

Cherry Cobbler!

My dorm room in Fort Awesome is the place to be on Tuesday and Thursday nights, specifically because we have a television where everyone can watch Glee and The Jersey Shore!  When everyone is here hanging out, I love making sure that there are snacks to go around (something to keep people occupied during commercial breaks).  This week, I decided it would be fun to make a classy dessert to go along with our classy entertainment!  According to http://www.wisegeek.com, the simplest definition of a fruit cobbler is “a dessert that contains a bottom layer of fruit, topped with some type of pastry.”  This recipe, adapted from the Taste of Home 2008 cookbook, turns the traditional cobbler upside-down and makes for a treat as sweet and juicy as all the MTV drama you could ever dream of.

A Medieval Feast!

Medieval Times, the dinner and live tournament show, has been around forever.  I remember the first time I went there with my family.  It was my birthday, and I was so excited by the prospect of getting to run around a huge castle, seeing knights and princesses, and yes: eating food with my hands.  I was never allowed to eat chicken or potatoes with my hands at home – so this was like, the coolest place to be!

More than a decade later I have to admit: Medieval Times still holds the same excitement for me.  True, as Marc and I entered the castle in Lyndhurst, NJ last night, it certainly looked smaller… but that didn’t make it any less fun!  We loved seeing the little kids decked out in their princess gear, wide-eyed with wonder; seeing adults toting around goblets bigger than their heads was funny, too.  The show was scheduled to start at 7.  We grabbed our crowns (we cheered for the Yellow Knight!) and filed into the arena, ready to embark on an entertaining culinary journey of epic proportions! 

Micro-Cooking: Vegan Brownies

(this article originally published on my column at www.hercampus.com/purchase)

Chocolate-y Goodness!

 Sometimes it’s important to focus on the sweet things in life: like dessert!  I don’t know about you, but as a college student constantly involved with homework and extra-curriculars, I don’t always have the time or money to buy fancy premade desserts (as much as I may want to).  For a fraction of the price of a plate of bakery brownies, you can make great tasting ones right in your microwave!  I was surprised at how easy these are to prepare and how tasty they are to eat. Added plus: they are completely vegan.  I’ve never really tried vegan cooking before, but with the counsel of my very animal conscience friend, Gaby, and some online research, I’d say this wasn’t bad for a first try!  You can really taste the banana flavor in these; paired with chocolate, this recipe is irresistible.

Micro-Cooking: Potato Chips

(This recipe was originally posted on my column at www.hercampus.com/purchase)

Simple, Easy, Tasty!

I’m always eager to nosh on potato chips and other salty, crunchy, greasy foods.  Unfortunately, the majority of my snacking occurs after a workout at the gym, canceling out any calories burned and leaving me feeling, well… guilty.  Luckily, after some research, I realized it was possible to have my chips and eat them, too!  Did you know that potatoes are actually a great source of Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, and potassium?  You can benefit from these nutrients without sacrificing that crunchy golden taste you know and love by putting your microwave to the test:  it’s time to make Homemade Potato Chips!