Teacher's favorite

The air is cooling down, and we've hit the month of September. For 17 years that meant going back to school for me. Now, the only school shopping I do is looking for a new ruffly white button up for the nine-to-five, and instead of waiting for the yellow bus to come, I'm waiting behind a cloud of exhaust at the Starbucks drive-thru window.

However, I did learn something this weekend. A few things actually... on my skateboard. I now have a little more fun rolling around thanks to friend Ian Milner for being the best teacher I've come across for learning things on the oblong piece of wood.

I felt the need to say thanks. What do teachers like? Apples. What is a stereotypical autum food? Pumpkin. Ian is a sweetheart for getting excited with me over a frontside grind on a three foot miniramp. That calls for sugar. Ian likes breakfast, but doesn't usually wake up in time to call it that. Well here's the thank you I came up with. I think pretty much any teacher would like this. Even if they can't stand on a skateboard to save their lives.

Sift together 2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour, 1 cup of brown sugar, 1 cup of white sugar, 1 tablespoon of nutmeg, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon of salt


In another bowl mix together 2 eggs, 1 cup of canned pumpkin puree, 1/2 cup vegetable oil


Pour wet mixture into dry and stir until even


Dice up two cups of fresh granny smith apples


Fold apples into wet mixture until even


In another bowl mix together 2 tablespoons of flour, 1/4 cup of white sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 4 teaspoons of cold small chunks of margarine


Now, this is suppose to be a muffin recipe. Pour the mixture into a muffin pan if you're feeling like going along with the norm. If your teacher is like Ian, and eating these treats after noontime doesn't seem right to have them be muffins, drop small globs of the mixture onto a greased baking sheet. Whether you make the muffins, or the cookies, sprinkle the cinnamon mixture ontop of each treat. It may be too sweet for muffins, but for the cookies, try topping it off with a few white chocolate chips.


Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes for the muffins and 10 minutes for the cookies.

While waiting for the apple-pumpkin-sweet-treats to rise and firm, watch a quick video of Ian skating. He's in the black tee-shirt.



You should end up with a bunch of back to school, teacher inspired treats that look something like the sort...

Banana Nutter

I've always been intrigued by what people do to lose weight, and more by how the body reacts to these lifestyles. Three days ago I started a liquid-only diet just for the pure fun of seeing how hard it would be, and how much my body decides to hate me. I'm on day 3 and in dire need of protein and potassium, I made this thick delicious drink:

Slice two bananas into small pieces, and put into a blender with 1/2 cup skim milk, 1/4 cup soy nuts, and 3 ice cubes.



"Liquify for 45 seconds, or until smooth, and pour into glass. Sprinkle a little ground cinnamon on top and serve.



You won't finish this fast. Not because it's not delicious, but because it's heavy and filling. While enjoying, fill in the conversations for this banana inspired comic from the Dole company.

Brussel Stacks

This past weekend I visited Wilder Ranch State Park in Santa Cruz. There were wonderful walking trails leading visitors along the oceans edge.

The ranch grows roughly 12% of all brussel sprouts consumed in the United States. Hmm, that got me thinking I should try cooking the small vegetables that look like miniature lettuce heads.

Brussel Stacks recipe...
Start by washing 1 lb. small brussel sprouts and removing any dead outside leaves. Cut the ends off and slice each sprout in half.


Pour olive oil into a large skillet over low to medium heat on stove top


Place sprouts flat side down on skillet and cover. Let cook for 15 minutes, or until flat sides are beginning to brown


Meantime, Slice 1 inch thick pieces of crispy loaf bread, such as Dutch bread, and one log of fresh mozzarella cheese




Add desired amount of diced garlic (around 2 tablespoons) and another small splash of olive oil to sprouts, and stir. Let cook for another 3 minutes.


Remove sprouts from skillet. The greens should be tender, and the flat sides a golden brown.


Place slices of bread on a large baking pan. Place 1 slice of cheese onto each slice of bread. Place at least three sprouts ontop of each slice of cheese. Bake in preheated oven at 250 degrees for 12-15 minutes, or until cheese is soft.


The final result should look pretty scrumptious..

I Love the Earth Granola

On my way outside to grab the morning newspaper, I found a friend. He, or she, reminded me today is the best day, Earth Day.

For all you hippies out there, and hipsters who now recycle because it's the "in" thing, here's a crunchy, earth loving snack.

Start by mixing 1/4 cup vegetable oil with 3/4 cup honey and stir until even

Mix in 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In separate bowl, combine 4 cups rolled oats, 1 cup sunflower seeds, 1 cup chopped walnuts, 1 cup coconut, and 1 cup Craisens

Stir all dry ingredients until even

Pour wet mixture into dry and stir until even. Pour raw granola onto greased baking pan and place in preheated oven at 300 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove every 10 minutes and stir granola.

Remove baked granola from oven and allow to cool. When completely cooled, break into small pieces and place in airtight bags, or because we're trying to stay green - tupperware, for future use. Enjoy!

Vice Cake

We all have our vices. A couple of my favorites are beer and coffee. Surprisingly enough, these two can be mixed together for a delicious dessert.

The inspiration for this recipe came from parties at my friend Danny's apartment. His roommate E-Train is a manager of a Starbucks, and instead of buying the classic red cups for beer pong, they use cups from the buck's.

 

Today is E-Train's birthday, and last night a party was thrown in celebration. I made him these vice cakes, because well, he loves these vices too.

The recipe...

Start by making the Oreo crumble crust. Crush about 1/2 a package of Oreo cookies and mix in 1/3 cup melted butter.

Set aside. Now for the beer cake.

Mix together 1/2 cup melted butter, 1/2 cup stout beer (Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout is delicious), and 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder.

In separate bowl mix together 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 3/4 teaspoon baking soda, 1/3 teaspoon salt.

In another bowl mix together 1 egg and 1/3 cup sour cream.

Combine three mixtures, and stir until even.

The final mixture should look something like this:

Now, the espresso cake.

Mix together 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup cocoa powder, 1/8 teaspoon baking soda, 3/4 teaspoon baking powder, and 1/8 teaspoon salt.

In separate bowl, mix together 1/4 cup vegetable oil, 1 egg, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, and 1/2 cup cooled brewed coffee.

Combine mixtures and stir until even. The final combo should look something like this...

Now for the layering. Grease a muffin pan. Pat a 1/8-1/4 inch layer of Oreo mixture into bottom of each hole, then pour a layer of the beer mixture ontop of the Oreo.

Fill the rest of the hole with the espresso mixture.

Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, or until they look done.

Allow the cakes to cool, then remove from tray. When completely cool, serve with whip cream topping, just like at Starbucks.

It's about time those vices paid off.

Blueberry Cheesecake with Chocolate Frosting

It's been 8 years since I've lived in one home for 12 consecutive months. I almost made it with my last one in Salinas, but one month early I moved to a new place. My roommate Alycia, her boyfriend Eddie, and their two dogs Caleb and Mia were wonderful roomies. Alycia bought me really beautiful measuring cups that look like flowers. To show my appreciation, I made her and Eddie cheesecake, using the new cups. It's blueberry cheesecake, because Alycia loves blueberries, and it has chocolate on top because Eddie loves chocolate.

Start by making the crust. Mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1 cup graham cracker crumbs, 1/2 cup melter butter.

Press mixture into large baking dish and for 12 minutes at 375 degrees.

While baking, start on the cake. Mix together 16 oz. cream cheese with 1 cup sugar. 

When smooth, mix in three large eggs, one at a time, with 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Pour mixture onto crust, and sprinkle desired amount of blueberries on top. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Heat 1/8 cup water in microwave safe bowl. When hot, add 8 oz. broken chocolate, or chips, to water and continue to microwave until melted. Stir until smooth. Pour chocolate onto baked  cheesecake. Return to oven for 5 minutes at 350 degrees.

Allow cake to cool, then refrigerate overnight. Cut into squares in the morning.

So far, i've lived in 11 different places. My favorite? It's always the current.