Recent food feats

Wild-caught salmon, seared scallops served with balsamic vinegar, steamed spinach, and mashed potatoes.

And....my first eggs benedict from scratch! Hollandaise sauce - I am no longer afraid of you :)

Christmas tree decorating

Starring: Star and Bell.

Food life

Salad with spinach, baby mixed greens, raw broccoli, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, golden raisins, and ginger mandarin dressing.

Grapes and hot Jasmine tea.

Holy Land red pepper hummus with fresh red pepper slices on whole wheat pita.

Cottage cheese and blackberries.

Dill havarti, brie, and cranberry-chipotle cheddar on toasted baguettes.

I love my food life.

Baked Apples on Greek Yogurt

Apples Baked with Cinnamon and Brown Sugar served on Yogurt

This morning I woke up early determined to make a special breakfast. I had decided last night that I wanted to make something seasonal, and I thought of cinnamon and apples. I also love to bake, so whenever I see recipes that combine breakfast with baking, I am temped to try them out. As I browsed through my extensive virtual recipe collection, I stopped and hovered my cursor over two different recipes: Baked Peanut Butter and Apple Oatmeal, and Baked Apples on Greek Yogurt. I finally decided on Greek yogurt over oatmeal, and pulled out my little pad of paper to make a grocery list. I made sure to add Greek Gods honey flavored yogurt, and I also tacked on some other items - steel-cut oats, canned pumpkin, dark brown sugar...you know, ingredients for all of those other baked breakfasts/desserts I still have to try out :)

So I got up at 7:30 this morning, recipe in hand, and got to work in the kitchen. I prepared the apple mixture in a baking pan and got it in the oven right away so I would have time to run off to the grocery store after they were done (and before my 10 am haircut appointment). The apples filled the house with a sweet, cinnamon smell and were done right on schedule, so I covered the pan in tinfoil and made a quick trip to the grocery store. I even made it back in time to photograph my finished product and sit down to eat with my family!

Everyone loved the Greek yogurt, and we topped our half-full bowls of yogurt with the hot, baked apples. Then we added a handful of granola and a drizzle of honey. It was even better than I expected - definitely a recipe to remember!

I also still have baked apples left over, so I want to find a creative use for them...or just heat them up and eat them with a scoop of vanilla ice cream like apple crisp...yummm.

I originally found this idea on Foodgawker, but I ended up modifying the recipe a bit. Here is the original and my own modified version.

Original recipe:

4-6 apples, peeled and cut into cubes

1 cinnamon stick
1/2 vanilla bean
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Combine all ingredients in an oven-safe pan. Roast apples for about 50-60 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes until apples are golden brown around the edges. Serve with vanilla ice cream, oatmeal or yogurt and granola.

Total time: 60-70 minutes 
Yield: 2 cups

Source:  http://www.wishfulchef.com/2011/10/roasted-apples/

My modified recipe:

6 Honeycrisp apples, peeled and cut into cubes

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Combine all ingredients in an oven-safe pan. Roast apples for about 50-60 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so until apples are golden brown around the edges. Serve with Greek yogurt and granola.

Total time: 60-70 minutes 
Yield: 2 cups

My very favorite Greek yogurt is Greek Gods Honey flavored yogurt - I like it so much that I drove  over to Kowalski's to buy it after doing all of my other grocery shopping at Cub (Cub doesn't carry the Greek Gods brand).

I also have a favorite granola (a new favorite, thanks to my grandma!) It is Great Harvest's granola that is cooked without oil. As you can see from the label, the only ingredients are rolled oats, almonds, sunflower seeds, raisins, honey, molasses, and cinnamon. They sell it in big 2 lb bags, which are very affordable (around $5.00) and last a long time.



I hope you all enjoyed this recipe, there will be more to come. Until next time!

Girls' night

I love spending time with my girlfriends, especially after not seeing them for a whole semester. I've been seeing a lot of them lately, and it almost always involves good food!



Coffee with eggnog and scrambled eggs with fresh spinach and shredded mozzarella



Aurora's cat, Bootz



Red wine, sliced Honeycrisp apples, and dill havarti and cranberry-chipotle cheddar with crackers

Good friends + good food = :)

Oatmeal

The perfect oatmeal.

Cooked oats with a small handful of homemade baked granola (flax seeds, oats, cinnamon, and chopped pecans), dried cranberries, golden raisins, walnuts, a splash of unsweetened soymilk, and a drizzle of honey.

The only thing that would have made it better is steel-cut oats instead of the quick-cook kind, but unfortunately that’s all I had. Oatmeal is the perfect winter breakfast. It’s nutritious, warms you up on cold mornings, and keeps you full!

Some variations that I like are adding pumpkin spice (or even canned pumpkin if you’re baking your oatmeal) and baked apples. I'm going to give a new recipe a try tomorrow morning so stay tuned :)

New Apartment

I'm getting excited to move into my new apartment!

(from left) Jessi, Jenna, Steph, me, and Anne.

I will be living with Jessi, Jenna, and Steph, because Anne is going abroad to France. It worked out perfectly because we were able to switch places (she lived there while I was abroad in Venezuela). The apartment is adorable and is right in the heart of Dinky Town. I've never lived in Dinky Town before, but I think I'm going to love it. Not to mention that all of my classes are huddled closer to University this semester and my job is only a few blocks from my new apartment. Anyways, I'm hoping to start moving my things in right after Christmas and add my touch to my new home! I can't wait to live with these girls, they are all so much fun. It looks like I have a promising semester ahead, and a whole month and a half left of break to enjoy before that! Life is looking good.

I had girl's night at Aurora's apartment last night, which is decked out in Christmas decorations, and now I am sitting on her couch with a cup of coffee because I slept over last night. We are off to Target (my second trip since being home...) and then I have more friends to see and catch up with: today I am going to see Gretchen's house. That's all for now...more updates on my Christmas break adventures to come.

Christmas spirit

Today I really got in the Christmas spirit!

I spent most of the day with my grandma listening to Christmas music, drinking hot tea and eating date cookies, window shopping, and admiring Christmas lights. We also stopped at Sebastian Joe's because after my long semester abroad, I was desperately craving good ice cream.



When I saw Candy Cane, Apple Crisp, Pumpkin, and Eggnog flavored ice cream, I knew I was really back in Minnesota! I chose a scoop of Eggnog and ate it on the closed-in patio with the fireplace.



This Eggnog ice cream is almost as good as the ever-famous Raspberry Chocolate Chip...and I really mean that! I don't remember the last time I walked into Sebastian Joe's and got something besides Raspberry Chocolate Chip, but I can honestly say I'm glad I did this time. I didn't walk out of Sebastian Joe's without having a taste of my all-time favorite Raspberry Chocolate Chip though - my grandma and I share our love for the flavor, so although she tasted the Grand Marnier ice cream, she went with the good old classic. It was just as good as I remember it!

After our day out, we headed back to her house to sip one more mug of hot tea and admire the Christmas tree while listening to Pandora Christmas radio.



And when I started to get too cozy on the couch, I decided it was time to stop by my future apartment for a date with my friends Jenna and Jessi who I'll be living with starting in January. When I walked in, this is what I was greeted with:



Now you can see why I'm in the Christmas spirit! The apartment was beautifully decorated and I was met at the door with smothering hugs and smiling faces. I LOVE my friends. I finally tore myself away to let them finish their homework and drove home in the bitter cold. I had completely forgotten about scraping ice off of windshields, waiting for the car to warm up, slippery roads, and snow emergencies, so today was a little rough for me car-wise. I'll get used to it though, even if it takes me a little while...80 degrees, sun, and palm trees to 20 degrees, ice, and snow is a big adjustment!

I made it home and headed up to my bedroom in search of a warm sweatshirt, where I found this.



Which one doesn't belong?

She loves to sleep there, but sometimes I don't notice her right away because she blends right in. This is exactly where I am as I'm typing this, sitting on my bed next to my adorable Christmas kitty, enjoying the smell of a burning candle on my bedside table, listening to Christmas music, and drinking a steaming cup of green tea. Life is good, and the Christmas spirit is here with me to stay!

Christmas cookies.

Today was my first full day back in Minnesota and it was full of family...and cookies. We baked spritz, sugar cookies, russian tea cakes, peanut-butter cup cookies, peanut-butter reindeer cookies, chocolate crinkles, almond bars, and snickerdoodles.

Definitely a successful day of baking! And I didn't mind the snow either...it went well with the baking and Christmas music, and I think I can handle a little cold after 5 months of tropical weather.

Here is the product of all of our hard work!

The chocolate crinkles are my favorite :)

Last day in Mérida

I can't believe it...

My study abroad trip is ending today. This is my last day in Mérida and I will miss it with all my heart!

Things that I will especially miss:

1. waking up to the sun rising over the mountains

2. eating arepas for breakfast and drinking café con leche

3. receiving surprise letters in the mail from my grandmas

4. my silly 8-year-old host brother asking to play with my E-POP (he means ipod :) )

5. the crazy buses blasting Bob Marley

6. speaking spanish and drinking 30 cent beers with my Venezuelan friends

7. spontaneous adventures up into the mountains

Things that I will not miss quite so much:

1. the random power outages

2. the ants

3. the taxis with horns that "whistle"

...and that's about it.

There are a million more things that I will miss, but I have them all documented on my blog, and most of them are memories I will never forget anyway.

Thank you Venezuela, for an AMAZING ADVENTURE!

And Chao for now, until we meet again someday :)

Kindness

"Kindness is more than deeds. It is an attitude, an expression, a look, a touch. It is anything that lifts another person"

As I was filling up my water bottle the other day during my break from class, a girl ran up to me and told me that she wanted to give me a gift. She was a bit younger than me, a Venezuelan student studying english at my school, and she reminded me that the week before, I'd helped her answer a question on her homework.

She smiled up at me and handed me a small truffle – a macadamia nut covered in chocolate.

When I say that I want to leave this country with me some of the qualities of the people here, this is exactly what I mean: the selflessness and the willingness and enthusiasm to go the extra mile to make someone’s day, to leave a good impression or to make a friend. It’s amazing...and it’s just a part of life here.

I have been challenging myself to adopt and internalize these qualities from my first week here in Venezuela, and I can honestly say that I notice myself reaching out more to people who I wouldn't have necessarily thought to talk to before. Their responses always makes me smile.

The other day I was leaving the little in-home laundry mat in our neighborhood. On my way out the door, the owner of the laundry mat (a thin woman with pigtails and braces in her early 30s) waved at me saying “¡Chao mi cielo!” which means “goodbye my heaven” - a common term of affection used here. Then, as I was halfway down the block, her two adorable children yelled at me from the balcony, “¡Chao linda!”, meaning “goodbye pretty girl!” These "palabras de cariño" or terms of affection are the norm, even among perfect strangers. Oh, I almost forgot to  mention the kiss on the cheek I received when I walked in the door to drop off my laundry :)

Done.

As of now, I am officially done with my semester in Mérida!

What a great feeling to be done with school. Almost as great as the feeling of a hot shower this morning after not having hot water for a week :)

After writing five final essays, two of them on topics in Latin American literature, two of them on Spanish sociolinguistics, and one of them on Latin American Politics (no to mention my final exams), I am SO ready for a break!

Goodbye, VENUSA.



Goodbye, hammock!



Hello, two sunny (and homework-free) days in Venezuela!



 

Hitting the books.

Today, I'm buckling down. Believe it or not (I can't), tomorrow is the last day of my semester!

Meaning: it is my last day attending school in Venezuela AND I will only have one semester left of college. AH!

Other meaning: I will be drinking too much coffee today.

I have 3 final essays to hand in tomorrow and I'm almost done with all of them, minus the rigorous editing process (which sometimes results in me basically re-arranging my whole paper). But we'll see. Being a perfectionist might come in handy when I get my grades in a couple of weeks.

I'm somehow justifying this blog post by reassuring myself that writing clears my head, after all, I only have 4 days left to blog from Venezuela! But I can only convince myself that this is productive for so long :)

So before I go, here's the recipe of the day (yes, I might have been browsing recipes too...don't judge me.)

Red wine-braised short ribs over goat cheese mashed potatoes, the perfect winter meal.

http://www.20somethingcupcakes.com/2011/11/short-ribs-over-goat-cheese-mashed-potatoes/

It's probably time to get back to my essays, wish me luck!

Pueblito Sueño del Abuelo

Yesterday my friends and I went on an adventure up to la culata (the valley) about a 45-minute drive up into the mountains from Mérida. I've been up there before, and I love the drive up because it gets colder by the minute. You get in the car wearing jeans and a t-shirt, and then about 20 minutes up into the mountains everyone is putting their sweatshirts on. Another 20 minutes goes by and the windows are rolled up and some people are getting out their gloves.

We stopped in la culata, but if you were to keep driving for another hour or so, you'd reach el páramo, which is a place high up in the mountain peaks where it's freezing cold and snowy. I've been there once at the beginning of the trip and it was absolutely beautiful. Anyways, the drive up to la culata is on a winding mountain road that passes through little pueblitos (towns) on the way. They are so quaint - the road is lined with colorful little cottage-like shops that sell home-made raspberry wine and candies. It is a popular weekend day-trip for Venezuelans to drive up to la culata to drink wine and admire the beautiful scenery. There are also hundreds of little family owned cabins in la culata that people rent out for the night. My group of friends and I have done that too - it's a nice get away spot for the weekend, and it's especially pretty if you can get up early enough to see the sun rise.

On our drive up, we were almost to our destination spot (a quiet spot at the end of a dirt road that is popular because of its beautiful view of the mountains), when we saw a little sign off the side of the road that said "Pueblito Sueño del Abuelo", which means little town called Grandfather's Dream. We were curious, especially after following the arrow on the sign down a tiny twisting dirt road that disappeared behind a line of colorful houses. We decided to take a detour and check it out.

We clunked along the dirt road and eventually drove over a little wooden bridge that spanned a babbling creek. We could barely see in front of us due to the fog (clouds, really, we were pretty high up in the mountains at this point) and thick greenery surrounding the skinny dirt road. We wound around another bend and climbed up a steep hill (thanks to 4 wheel drive) until we saw this sign:



"PUEBLITO SUENO DEL ABUELO, Un Rincón para Soñar..." Translation: Town of Grandfather's Dream: a corner for dreaming..."

So, we parked the car and set out to explore this tiny dream town, tucked away in a corner and hidden by the clouds and mountains.

A woman met us at the gate and opened it for us without saying a word. We all walked through the heavy red door, as a little girl stared silently from her perch on a stone wall amongst a blue hydrangea bush. We walked along a skinny maze-like pathway, under a trellis covered in roses, and over a tiny bridge and trickling stream. And then we were inside the pueblito. It was full of miniature-sized houses and buildings in every color - there were cafes and castles and stores, but no people in sight. So we set off silently with our cameras to explore.

I felt like I was in a dream.

After visiting the pueblito, we continued on our journey further into the mountains to catch the view we'd been waiting for - my goal was to be high enough into the mountains to see the clouds rest on the ground around me. And we did it. We got there before sunset and even met a man on the way who let us take turns riding his horse. I'd say it was a successful trip! Now take a look at what I mean when I say "I felt like I was in a dream" and "we had our heads in the clouds".