Super Bowl Sunday

I woke up thinking I would be attending a Super Bowl Party, so immediately after breakfast I got to work on my contribution: the appropriately themed Chocolate Covered Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Footballs from the blog Peas and Thank You.

First I gathered my ingredients,

arranged Keizo in the oranges (conveniently located near an outlet for charging)

and got to mixing.  This recipe is easy to follow and create, but has a few steps which require some resting in between which is why I started early.

All of the dough ingredients combined, I pre-heated the oven and got to shaping my footballs.

 

After the balls had baked and cooled, I melted chocolate chips and 1 Tbsp of canola oil in the microwave.

Then I grabbed some chopsticks (a kitchen utensil I find almost as useful as scissors!) and began dipping.  At least the dough balls are now more of the right color!

I put the covered footballs back in the fridge until after lunch, when I piped chocolate laces onto them.  I think they would have looked better with white, but I used up the last of my powdered sugar in the dough and already had some chocolate frosting in the fridge to use up!

Alas, the headache and congestion I began experiencing on Thursday didn't dissipate after a few hours of being awake like it did on Friday and Saturday, so I decided not to attend the Super Bowl party. :-(  I did send most of the footballs along with my housemates.  The ones that got stuck here with me are rapidly diminishing in number, so I don't expect any of the others to make it back.

*****

Without a buffet of high calorie snacks to choose from, I was stuck making my own dinner.  I had already eaten leftovers for lunch, but I kept it simple again with a veggie burger, carrots & hummus and cup of instant potato soup.

Nachos, wings and chocolate covered footballs, this meal was not.  But neither do I have a stomachache to accompany the headache, and I consider that a VICTORY.

PB, B & J

After two failed attempts (Friday and Saturday) of getting up at a normal time so that I could go jogging before it got really hot, I managed to get myself up, dressed and out the door before 9 AM today. Before I left, I drank some water and ate about 1/2 a banana. By the time I finished my jog, cooled off a bit and stretched, it was about 10 AM and I was very ready for some breakfast.

Although eating 1/2 of a banana and leaving the rest behind runs in the family (my maternal grandfather did it all the time) I know that my immediate family members don't look too kindly on this practice so I wanted to use up the remaining half before it got brown. I toasted some wheat bread, smeared on some PB, added a layer of banana slices and some homemade strawberry jam and made a sandwich.

Note the triangles. This is the way all sandwiches should be cut in my opinion. Even wraps/subs should be cut on a angle so you have a nice point to stick in your mouth. Corners and flat edges don't make nice starting points for sandwich enjoyment.

The day got off to a good start, but my level of productivity has been in a downward slide post-shower. I am tired of packing, and I saved the hardest part for last---my clothes. Why am I so attached to things I don't even wear?!?

Lucky Girl

I am a very lucky girl to have a fantastic boyfriend, who despite my mood swings and large clumps of hair in the shower drain, still wants to be with me and often goes above and beyond to prove that to me. Recently, this has involved a midnight trip to the ER and some extra cooking and dish washing duties. Since this is a food blog and the wound stings as it is, I won't go into all the gory details. Let's just say that I tripped while jogging, and now there is significantly less skin on my left palm than there used to be.

In addition to my rather gruesome injury, my application for the University of Washington was due over the weekend, so while I was madly typing away on the last bit of it, Keizo made us dinner. I provided the recipe for "Peanut Noodle Salad," but he did everything else. I love this recipe because it's easy to prepare and makes enough dressing for at least two meals. The dressing is little more than peanut butter, sesame oil and chili powder thinned with some hot water then poured over soba noodles, tofu and steamed vegetables. It's good served either warm or cold, and I think it makes the perfect vegetarian meal.

Another favorite vegetable recipe of late is "Vinegared Carrot and Daikon Salad," which I found on the website of the Boston Globe of all places. While it requires a bit of advance planning, the short ingredient list and tasty results are well worth it. After cutting the carrots and daikon (Japanese radish) into thin strips, toss the vegetables with salt and let sit. Make the vinegar and sugar dressing; rinse off the salt and toss together. Serve with white sesame seeds. Sweet and crunchy!

Thanks Keizo for taking care of me, not only while my left hand is a bit out of commission, but all of the times before that, and those yet to come too.