the best part of me

givesushope
It's that glorious time of year when we reunite with loved ones (we neglected all year), stuff our faces to excess, and pass out in front of the TV. Perhaps a recalibration of the thanksometer is in order. A spin-off of the popular GivesMeHope.com site, this community invites you to document moments of kindness, generosity, and pure human love in 350 words or less.

veggieslackers
Despite its mainstream appeal, Thanksgiving is not for everyone. There are those struggling with food disorders, for whom this day causes endless conflict. There are the cash-challenged, who can't afford the gluttony we've grown to expect. There are the lonely, who don't have loved ones nearby. And let's not forget the vegetarians, who decry the animal cruelty. But there's one more group we often overlook: the terminally lazy! This community of lazy vegetarians offers easy recipes for an animal-friendly feast.

fashin
Just in time for holiday shopping season, this fashionista community brings you the world of haute couture in the form of sumptuous photos, video clips, and candid commentary. There's also a sugary sprinkle of mainstream movie discussions and debates on such pressing social issues as manicure styles and celebrity colonics. If you need a break from the daily grind to indulge your girlie side, this is twinkly pink on steroids.

I'm kind of mad at myself for filing this lawsuit, but at the same time I'm so angry and hurt still by my condition, I feel pinned. I am suing Yaz for my pulmonary embolisms. The doctors told me not to have children because I can pull a clot and die, and my father lost our health benefits. I'm sure you'd do it too.

Dear Nicole, I deeply appreciate you getting in to a car accident this morning. As if you don't already pay enough for your insurance, now it's going to go up another 60%.

Dear Lady, I'm sorry for hitting your bumper after you stopped short while merging, you money-hungry middle aged woman who didn't hesitate to 'throw me under the bus' to a state trooper.

My bread fanaticism began when publishers sent me a copy of Andrew Whitley’s new book, Bread Matters: The State of Modern Bread and a Definitive Guide to Baking Your Own. The book makes the case for bread activism -- avoiding possibly harmful and certainly less wholesome mass-produced bread in favor of making your own. Apart from just a political stance, though, Whitley presents breadmaking as an artform -- and one that doesn't have to be too time-consuming, at that. He calculates that a loaf of bread only takes about 30-40 minutes of active work punctuated by periods of waiting.

This was my first experience with letting a sponge ferment for days and baking it into a loaf of delicious bread -- and I'm hooked on the experience, from mixing, to kneading, to proofing, to baking, to eating! My boyfriend and I ate our cheese bread with chicken and dumplings, and then used the leftovers for something decidedly more sinister . . . :)




( recipe and photos, including a picture of the PERFECT USE for leftover cheese bread )


To read my review of the book Bread Matters, listen to me waxing poetic about bread, see a photo of how entertaining kneading can be, or just to see more pictures of that amazing breakfast sandwich, please head over to my baking blog, Willow Bird Baking!

x posted to food_porn, bakebakebake, and cooking

oh yeah, and roast beef, too. And gravy, and peas, and roasted carrots, and garlic mashed potatoes. But most importantly, YORKSHIRE PUDDING.


This was my first attempt at this grand and most favourite meal. I did overcook the meat, which I think is a common issue, but it was still so so tasty. I am currently enjoying cold roast beef sandwiches with mustard.



Brought to you by The Cast-Iron Darling!

I love to bake and have been following this community for quite some time but yet have never posted. But since I've started my own blog I feel like its time to start sharing my photos and favorite recipes in other places as well!

This past weekend my boyfriend and I made english muffins and they were so easy and delicious.




( More pictures this way )

... making brownies from scratch!

I don't know how or why, but I have a subscription to Better Homes & Gardens Magazine. I have neither a home (of my own, at least) nor a garden, so I just look at the recipes in the back. A couple of months ago I found a recipe for Cinnamon-Spice Chocolate Brownies and thought they sounded both delicious and easy to make.

( the saga continues (with a lot of pictures!) )

I just found out I'm allergic to wheat, milk, and sugar, so I had to come up with a way to alter my go-to cornbread recipe.

I put together 2 cups of masa (Mexican corn meal - other kinds might be sweeter, but it's what I had), 1 tbsp baking powder, 2 eggs, 1 tsp salt, 3 tbsp margarine, and 1 cup soy milk, then baked for 15 minutes at 450.

It turned out ok, but I'm thinking all the substitution I did made it turn skewy, because it's a bit hard and it's not as sweet as I'd like. I guess they're not too bad, though, seeing that my roommates devoured them. However, I'd like to improve it. Any suggestions?

what about me? i'm important too.

1) With excessive time on my hands, I went back quite a few entries. I want to thank some of you for your honesty. Not only does posting here allow you a slight vent. But it also allows for other people to relate. Some of your posts about love, pain, and relationships gave me chills, and your self-written poems were Beautiful.

2) In your opinion - What is the difference between love, and infatuation? Can you HONESTLY say that you were genuinely in-love with someone?

Bad Eating. Lack of Exercise. Overall Lethargy.

The unhealthy trend continues.. Luckily, I've gained nothing..or it hasn't been significant because my pants fit the same. Friday, my school had our second annual Powderpuff Football game [Junior Girls vs. Senior Girls]. It was flag football but apparently the junior girls ignored that and tried to annihilate us, unfortuntely for us...they did win. I'm proud of my team, we all played great and FAIR. I would have never attempted to even try to play any kind of sport even if it was for one event last year. I have more confidence and I'm more athletically inclined than I ever was. I was tackled a few times...but I got someone's flag, so that was awesome. Too bad the juniors cheated to win, otherwise it would have been a good game.

Anyway, I HAVE to eat better and exercise this week. My body is completely worn out from football...I can't even count the bruises. I need a scale because I'd love to know how much weight I've lost since July. Anyway, I'm keeping my goal of getting down to a true size 11/12 by my birthday in January. Wish me luck.

I just watched this movie for the first time. It was really good. It made me feel... hopeful, sort of, like the world has more to offer than what I've seen. Is that lame? It's totally lame, yeah. But I guess I just feel like I have to go on some kind of new adventure. I'm bored. Super bored of my life. I want to move somewhere and do something interesting and fun; I want to fall in love in some odd way... like in that movie Amelie (which was so cute, by the way). I don't know what my point is, I guess it's just this: I'm kind of tired of living in Toronto. It gets boring after say, 18 years or so.

I'm not sure if asking questions is allowed; my apologies if it isn't.

I'm trying really hard to find this video on Youtube ... this girl is holding (what I think is a) tiny kitten, and she says, "tough guy! gonna eat you up!" and then the kitten mews and she laughs. I'm not even 100% sure it's a kitten, but I'm fairly sure it's a little gray one.

Help? It's almost like a song stuck in my head.

ETA: Found by wuweibaby! Thank you!!

I miss my BBs. A lot ):

I love Sundays cause they pass by slow and I like it. I must attempt to wake up in the morning to go for morning masses from now on then I'll have Sundays all to myself (: Yesterday was a nice Sunday although it was a bit hot in the afternoon; it was still nice :D

This Sunday I'll be baking with my favorite makan girls - Bara, Charlene, Stephy and Naj! I love that they're coming down all the way to mess up my kitchen. Vanilla cupcakes here we come :D Woohoo, weekend hurry come hurry come! I cannot contain my excitement hehe!! Ok back to HK teacher *rolls eyes*


I'm putting my heart on the line (again).
All for you.

Hey all!

I am currently doing superbly with my new plans :D The Biggest Loser Cardio Max dvd keeps on kicking my butt - I have a lot more muscle and it feels amazing - I am beginning weeks 3-4 tomorrow (i stretch it out over 3wks instead of just 2, so it'll tide me over till after the holiday feasting season! :) But, the reason I am actually posting is because...

I need some easy, delicious recipes that don't require a lot of ingredients and that are healthy too. So if anyone has any kindly comment to here and let me know what they are :D Thanks!!!!!

ONE WEEK TO GO!!!
At this time next Sunday....I'll be well into the midmiles of the Flying Monkey Marathon!

Anxieties:

The weather has been WONDERFUL the past few weekends, what will next week be like??? Current forecast say 30% chance of showers, but weather forecasts change as frequently as..well, the weather!

I'm unsure about my shoes. On the roads, I've been training mostly in my Newtons and they are still comfy and have been great in shorter distance races. However, on the other foot, the miles are adding up on them and they are a neutral design shoe while my new Mizuno's are stability shoes for overpronation. So, I wonder what is really best for my feet? But the Miz' are brand spankin' new and not even broken in yet. One of the "rules" of marathoning is "don't do anything different" right before the race. So, I'm inclined to run the Monkey in the Newtons and then swap over to the Mizuno's in the weeks before my next race. Maybe I can save up for a pair of Newton's stability model shoes down the road? Lol..what can I say, I like my bright pink shoes; they appeal to my lack of fashion sense!

I'm going to do my best to EAT RIGHT this week. Food is Fuel. I'm going to make myself some special treat/comfort food favorites (things like avocado shakes, pumpkin pie mousse, etc*) but NO JUNK FOOD. Have to ask my daughter Hannah if she prefers Italian (pasta) or Sushi (rice) for a good pre-race carbs dinner? Either one sounds good!

*This morning for breakfast, I had cheese blintzes with toasted almonds. Thank you and no thank you Rachel Ray! I was watching the food network the other night and caught her making dessert on 30 minute meals---a sundae featuring fig cookies, rum raisin icecream, warmed nutella hazelnut chocolate spread as topping, whipped cream and tasted nuts. OMG--too much fat and too many calories! But I did like the idea of toasting the nuts, so I tried that with the almonds, heat up a small skillet, spritz of butterspray, and warm the nuts until they brown and (as Rachel said) "smell right." Yum.

M 5/ 2walk
T Rain/Rest
W 9.5
Th 4
F Rest
S 7.5/ 1.5walk
Sn 4.5 Total= 34 miles

Weight: 121.8 (+.4)