Good story of the week

So today, in honor of our presidents and american culture, my roomate, her sister and husband and I all went out to Red Robin. Yes it sounds rash and expensive, but it gets better. First I realized that Red Robin has free bottomless fries, all you have to do is ask. So we were eating fries (which are better then most I have eaten), and the waitress asked if we would move tables because they needed to use ours, and if we did we would get free dessert. So we're like " yeah of course" (we would of moved even if we didn't get a free dessert for sure). As we ate our various plates we discussed what we could of done to recieve such good fortune.

After a burger and fries we were all quite full enough. But in good american fashion we requested our free dessert. What did we order? The "mile high mud pie". The picture looked quite small really, not nearly a mile tall. But what we got was huge, probably seven inches tall, with whip cream. What it was was chocolate icecream, vanilla iceream, and peanut butter things, and fudgy things, and cookie crumb things. It was quite good, for a while... Soon we were groaning, taking spoonful after spoonful, but we had to finish it, heck we got it for free. As we left the resturaunt, totally overloaded and in real physical pain I realized, this wasn't a blessing, but a lesson, learned the hard way. I need to eat less like an american.

Pancake's Day

You may or may not know that today (february 12th) is pancake day. Well I am not sure if it is official, but thats how most food holidays in my life tend to go down. Take May 10th-pudding day. It started in 7th grade, a friend of mine was eating chocolate pudding, I don't know how it started but Lucy was in a particular fiesty mood, and pudding ended up on Julia's shirt. There was a chase scene, and from that year on May 10th was a holiday in our lives. It started out with making pudding, or going to the park and having pudding fights, then gradually turned into just mentioning and the occasional pudding cup.

Back to pancakes though. In honor of pancake day IHOP (international house of pancakes) gave away a stack of free pancakes to anyone who asked (which means I didn't make up this holiday). My roomate Heather and I partook of this golden opprotunity, gathered ward members and went on a trip to Springville. Cleverly (and correctly) we had decided that springville would be less full of hungry anxious college students, it turned out that we were one of the few groups there partaking of free pancakes.

Moral of the story? Food should be celebrated annually, and if you want free pancakes go to the IHOP in Springville, the line isn't as long.

The Avocado

As my roomate and I were sitting at the table eating the fresh guacamole I had just prepared, a thought came to me. Avocados are the best fruit ever--yes they are a fruit. Not only are they a wonderful color, but they are creamy, delicous, and healthy. My absolute favorite way to eat avocado is in homeade chunky guacomole, not made from a package, but real onions, lime juice etc. In honor of the avocado that made my weekend I have some fun facts about avocados provided by www.avocado.org.

• Avocados are sodium and cholesteral free, with only 5 grams of fat.
• two mature avocado trees can provide enough oxygen for a family of four
• 43% of US households by avocados
• there are 7,000 avocado groves in California
• The avocado is also called an alligator pear.

Yeah, I know right?

So whats your favorite way to eat an avocado? Or do you just hate the blessed fruit? Tell me, or not.

The cake I pretend I didn't make

It all started with a gallon of sour milk. Immediately my mom's frugality skipped into my mind "oh we can't waste this, lets use it to bake.". Now the concept was simple, find a recipe that uses the most milk for the best product. Ideally the result is homemade goodness, fluffy and sublime.

I spent a good amount of time looking for recipes on Allrecipes.com for things containing 'sourmilk'. Most of the recipes contained things I didn't have, like 5 banana's, or 3 cups shredded zucchini and ginger-root. So I decided on a chocolate cake recipe. The reviewers gave wonderful comments, things like 'tastes just like my grandma used to make, and when she died I couldn't find the recipe, but this is it!'. I was apprehensive about the 1/3 cup of shortening (or lard, which no college student has...), and the simple vague directions, but went through with it anyways. The first problem I encountered was how to 'blend' shortening, egg, milk and sugar. The shortening just separated into clumps, even so, I was determined. After laboring through mixing and following directions, I succeeded in making the batter, I poured it into my greased and floured cake pan, and proceeded to put it in the oven. Half an hour later I checked it for 'doneness'. Our apartment lacked toothpicks, so I went with my mom's other rule, that if you tap it lightly and it springs back, then it's perfect--so I did, and I swear it sprung back, happier then two Easter bunnies in a field of plastic grass. I continued to let the cake cool. After I did some homework I came back to the cake (probably gloating.) only to find a poolball-sized crater in the middle. The inside had totally not cooked for some reason. I was distraught. After consulting my roommate, and screaming a little, I put the cake back in the oven. Did it work? no, I only succeeded in drying out the outside of the cake. And to top it of, when I took the cake out of its pan, the middle came out. So being resourceful, and not one to through away baked goods, I cut a circle out of the middle of the cake and declared it a bunt. I made frosting from guessing, which turned out fantastic actually. In the end, the cake was dry, but homemade, and I used a cup of our sour milk, that's what really counts.

In case of emergency- pack a PB&J

This weekend was quite an exciting one in terms of college life. The goal? Get to phoenix arizona by 3 am friday morning. It all began with becca locking her keys in her car. We patiently waited for the locksmith to come while eating cold pizza. If you remember thursday night was very cold, but eventually the locksmith came and saved the day for a few dozen dollars. We climbed into the vehicle. After about five minutes it was still cold, but heather asked to borrow my jacket, I let her use it on the terms that she return it if the car breaks down.

The weather continued to darken, and an hour of driving caused our heater to stop working, we had no idea what was going on. About half an hour later our car died, and we we're stranded, probably half an hour from Beaver, in the cold darkness.

Heather returned my jacket.

As it were, we were stuck in beaver for the night, with no car and no prospects. And yes we were hungry. Luckily heather and I had packed each an apple and 1/2 of a PB and J sandwich. As we sat on the rickety motel bed worried about rental cars, hitch hiking, and the questionable cleanliness of surroundings, the 1/2 of a PB&J was a comfort. It was like biting into sticky, fun memories.

Yes eventually after several calls, the help of a stranger, and more money then planned, we made it to phoenix. The sun blinded my eyes and tickled my skin. The weekend was wonderful, full of sunshine and cantaloupe. But as good things go, this one came to an end, and it was time to leave. The night before we left I made heather and I each an entire pb&j sandwich, just in case.

Sandwich Artist

So as it turns out, I am a sandwich artist. At least I think that's my job title. I happen to work at the Subway on Bulldog. So three times a week you can find me there, behind the counter ready to serve you a delectable sandwich made with the utmost precision. But really it's not that glamourous. The most popular sandwich I make is turkey on white bread with just mayonaise, and olives. I wish I could say something to them, like-"try a vegetable, they're nutritious, and I have several", but I can't. For those unfamiliar to the subway tradition, you can choose what bread, meat, vegetables and condiments you would like. As the result you have a beautiful sandwich, made fresh and just the way you like it. I realize that sounds like a promotional plug in, but we were expecting that from the beginning. Anyway, I do really enjoy sandwiches, and I even get a free sandwich every shift, except for as of last week I have to pay the 27 cent tax... Which is really quite affordable for a meal. So there is another aspect of my life.

p.s. If you're wondering, my favorite sandwich is either the BMT, or turkey on wheat (both with all the veggies).

The beginning of our Food Experiment--January

Even though I have a misleading name, I have never eaten at the Red lobster. In fact I have never eaten a lobster or crustacean (except for fake crab once...) . My seafood experience is actually quite insignificant. I do enjoy the regular tuna fish sandwich, and fresh fish-- but generally I don't eat fishes from the sea, I usually stick with the burritos, salads and chicken.

I am actually a freshman here at BYU, and I live off campus, only because I needed a kitchen and space. I am very grateful for my kitchen because I get to cook so often. I don't get to crazy with my food because of budget, but my roommates do know me for spending three hours Saturdays making a veggie soup from scratch. When I have the time I also have been known to experiment with baking. Most recently before winter break I made pumpkin yeast bread, which wasn't that sweet kind that your mom gets from her visiting teachers. It was enjoyable to say the least.

I think that I should explain the lobster thing in more detail, because some might be confused. Several years ago I was shopping in a thrift store with my friend back in Oregon, when we came across a navy dress with red lobsters on it. "You have to wear this" my friend exclaimed, "okay" I replied, and like that every time we saw something with a lobster on it, it had to be accumulated. Soon we we're making lobster stamps and sewing lobsters on my tshirts. It was fun. Then along came Ann Klein with her special lobster collection ( a fashion designer known for her preppy bags, sweaters and classic women's clothing) needless to say we were shocked, and felt cheated. But we're over it now, and I still tend to collect lobster curios. Its not like lobsters consume my life, but it is an interesting thing about me, and everyone can associate lobsters with Shannon to make their life easier. That's probably the last you will hear about lobsters from me.