Snickers Dark

I'm not a food blogger, but at the store recently, I've noticed a considerable number of dark chocolate options for candy.  As a dark chocolate novice, I find this delightful.  So I decided today to write about my experience trying the Snickers Dark.

Bite 1: It taste like a Snickers.

Bite 2: Still taste like a Snickers, but I get a subtle hint of darkness.

Bite 3: Ditto

Bite 4: It taste better than the original Snickers.

Bite 5: (BIG BITE) Am I still blogging?

Bite 6: Why am I still blogging?

Bite 7: Good to the last nugget.

After taste: Has the lingering dark effect, but is subtle and goooood.

Beautiful and Cheap (or Free!)

I would like to thank my friend Jenny for turning me on to these beautiful cards from Shutterfly. I must note, that I do in fact think they really are beautiful and would still think they are beautiful if Shutterfly wasn't giving away 50 free holiday cards to bloggers who blog about them (seriously, we all love Shutterfly, go on and blog about them too!).

Here are my favorite folded cards:

Here's why I love them: The top left is my favorite.  I love the simple elegance.  I love the colors on the second one (top right).  Again, the simplicity of the bottom left, mixing modern (the polka dot border) with traditional (love that script).  Such a good job.  On the last card (bottom right), I love how the picture is the total focus of the card with a simple, but powerful, Merry Christmas.

I also liked this one below.  I think it's great for those who are making the transition from store bought to printed cards.  Or if you're just exceptionally private...or have very few photos...or live by yourself and think putting you and your cat on the front of a card, might be silly.  What's great about this one (and all of them above) is that you can put a photo on the inside.  Love it.

Here are my favorite flat photo cards (these are the cheapest).  I love the colors in these so much.  They're just so pretty.  I also really love the photo strip on the bottom one.  I think it would super cute if you had consecutive shots (like a photo booth) of a couple or family (or cat and yourself).

Most Complicated Directions

This is from my Kashi Mayan Harvest Bake frozen dinner.  Super good.  Super specific directions.

Chuck. Chuck. Chuck. Chuck.

I can't wait.  I've been rewatching my seasons of Chuck, only two discs left and then THIS - tomorrow night at 7pm (or 8pm for our east coast friends) on NBC.

Chuck Season 4.

I also added a new video on my Video page describing why I love Gmail's Priority Inbox.  It has changed my life.  Seriously.  I actually get my emails now.

My 100th Blog Post

This picture seems like the perfect 100th post for my blog.  We enjoyed some amazing fondue at The Melting Pot...the chocolate took me to a little place only reserved for the most incrediable of experiences and being in the presence of good friends, with great conversation, was the perfect ending to a day.

The 26th Year

Ah, another year, another number.  When I got up this morning I decided this years birthday theme would be hoedown, which may have been influenced by the WAY cute wild west cowboy party my friend had for her son's first birthday.  It also happened to work out well since I had requested barbeque for my birthday dinner :).  So naturally, I wore my cowgirl shirt to work to celebrate and then partied hoedown style with my family.  I love my family...they're great at rolling with the punches! (because by the way, I informed them of the theme of my birthday dinner an hour before it...whoops).  Oh, and sadly I forgot to take pictures...I was having too much fun or sick from too much cookie cake and bbq.

On a totally different topic, I love these colors!  I think this is my new favorite color pallet.

Here's the back story on how I found this arrangement (because I know everyone was wondering): On the way home from my parents, I bought myself flowers as a birthday gift and to have something pretty to look at all night as I typed my last paper for classes this semester (wahoo!).  So I get home, put the roses in a vase, make them look pretty, and set them next to my computer.  Next thing I know I have a cat zooming across the table and devouring the beautiful arrangement.  Luckily, he responds really well to "NO" and not much damage was done.  One thing led to another and as I researching whether roses were poisonous for cats, I found a website (ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center) that created a pet-friendly collection of flower arrangements through one of those big flower companies, with a bonus of 20% of the proceeds going to their organization.  Who knew someone would ever think to create a pet-friendly collection so you could rest easy knowing the flowers you sent won't kill your friends beloved pets?  Crazy world out there.

And now, back to the paper.  :)

My Barnes and Noble purchases...

Check out what I got this weekend...

I found these tiny notebooks at Barnes and Noble. To get an idea of their size, stick out your hand look at your palm...it can fit in your hand. No kidding. They are 2 1/2" by 4". I plan on using them to help me not forget things.

And I found this magazine...which rocks. I had never read it before, but such a good by I'm considering getting a subscription...however, it only comes out quarterly. Hmmm....

I don't do much farming, but I do like things that are green. :) It seemed like a good change in pace from our normal everday magazines. And thus far it is!

My new Chucks!

It's that time of year...for the flip flops to retire. In honor of this time (and in order to actually make it happen), I got a new pair of chucks! So exciting.



You can also see my purchase from last weekend too in this picture...my new 1969 sexy bootcut jeans from the gap. Who knew sexy bootcut jeans could be pair with sneakers?

eat.shop.kansas city

So I feel a bit like a fraud having just bought my copy of eat.shop.kansas city at Barnes and Noble. So you won't make the same mistake, here's where you can buy it directly from the publisher - http://eatshopguides.com/buy.php you have your choice of buying a print copy or an electronic copy...what a crazy wired world we live in now.



Anyway, this book is wonderful! I bought mine about an hour ago and I've been glued to it. It does a wonderful job of highlighting the best of our local flare. It goes beyond our very typical tourist spots like Gates, Union Station...etc. It has 85 local places...including bookstores, clothing stores, toy stores...and of course food...from bbq to bistros to sweets to down home greasy cooking.


My personal favorite currently is Fresher Than Fresh Snowcones:


Pictures speak a 1,000 words and this pretty much sums it up. I had my first snowcone from them today...simply incredible. I may begin reserving a place in my budget for snowcones.

These are a few of my favorite things...

So I just bought a pint of Talenti sobetto Roman Raspberry (top picture) from Whole Foods about an hour ago...I am floored. It is the best I've had since Italy...which is tough competition because when I was there I had it three times a day every day I was there...yeah, obsessed? Maybe. So it is topping my list today of wonderful things. Price wise it's not bad, but it's not an everyday thing, it was $4.99 at whole foods for the pint. http://www.talentigelato.com/

My favorite brand. 365 Everyday Value at Whole Foods. This is Whole Food's version of a store brand...but there's nothing watery about it...the food is amazing and very affordable sometimes more affordable then the regular grocery store (actually often cheaper). In particular I love their Peach Mango Salsa...SO GOOD.

This was another recent find...I found it as I was shopping at Target and desperate for caffeine. Target didn't have the biggest selection of teas (it was only a Greatland store), so my options for black tea were limited to unreasonably cheap (which meant horrible) and this $3 chi...I opted for the $3 chi. I was SO amazed when I got home and brewed my first cup. I should probably explain that I am new to this whole tea drinking thing, so this was the first time I ever had tasted (and enjoyed) all the flavors in the tea...it was delightful.

This is a staple in my pantry. Skippy give me the best of all worlds...affordable ($2.20), natural (peanuts, sugar, palm oil, and salt), and for the most part no stirring...ahh wonderful. I've begun adding a bit of ground flax seed to my jar...so I can sneak in some greatness of flax seed (omega-3's).

Alas for now that will have to do...I must go to bed...we'll explore my other favorite non-food items another time.

Mmmmm...just ate a bbq sundae...yeah you heard right. Beans, coleslaw, and pulled pork all layered and served up in a manson jar :) good eatin'

My (cheap) easy dinners...

Living on my own I've discovered that I don't know how to cook and that eating out is too expensive. I'm not really sure how I survived the last year, I remember eating lots of chips and salsa... So in the past few months it's been my quest to learn how to cook, simple, healthy recipes. I thought this would be a breeze, but it turns out that one, it's really hard to find simple, healthy recipes and two, being a visual and kinestic learner, I don't learn best by reading a recipe. And besides, I wanted (still want) to actually learn how to cook so I can create things on my own or vary a recipe (without it turning terrible). So I've been on the hunt, asking anyone and everyone to share their everyday recipes - I'm not looking for the fancy stuff, just what you make yourself for dinner. And forcing all those I come in contact with at meal time to teach me what they are doing - beware you may fall victim to this.

So in light of what I've been learning I thought I would share my recipes (note, these are not all healthy...that has been waay more difficult).

Mom's Super Simple Chili:
2 cans of tomatoes "chili ready" (it will say this on the can)
1 can of beans "chili ready"
1 lb (or less) of ground turkey

Brown turkey, drain fat, put everything together in a big pot, wait until it's hot (some think letting it simmer makes it taste better) then eat.

Beans and Weenies (as inspired by my grandparents, but made with mom's simplicity)
1 can of cheap pork and beans
Favorite BBQ sauce
2 turkey hot dogs

Slice turkey dogs, add to pork and beans, add as much bbq sauce as you like (I go by color), then heat up (stove or microwave works).
*I found a bbq sauce that is light on sodium and calories.

Katy's Baked Chicken
Chicken tenders or breasts (however many you want to eat)
Crackers (I use healthy saltines)
Spices
*Egg if you are making more then one or two servings

Thaw chicken, preheat oven to 375 to 400 degrees, crush crackers (enough cover your chicken) into a very fine dusty like texture (Katy says so they don't look like crackers anymore) - Katy uses a food processor to do this, I crush them in a bowl with the bottom of a spice bottle. Add spices to crackers - this is where I have a hard time and have to consult the internet - whatever spices you like and think would go together. If you are making enough that it makes it worth it to crack a whole egg, then do it, coat the chicken it the egg (Katy says it makes it better, but I've never made enough to try it). Season chicken (salt and pepper it). Put chicken in crushed crackers and coat well. Coat pan with Pam - if you don't own Pam like me, I wipe a bit of oil on the bottom of the pan - Katy says to do this even if you're using a non-stick pan because it helped it brown the outside a bit. Bake in oven for 10 to 20 minutesish...I check every 10 mins. and cut the chicken open a bit to see if it's cooked.

Black Bean Pizza (it's been awhile since I've made this...so it's a bit vague)
1 can of black beans - rinsed
Pesto (can typically find this premade in the store - my mom finds hers in the produce department by the salads at Target in a tube)
Mozzarella cheese - shredded
Premade pizza crust (whole wheat if you can find it) - I think find these in the pasta aisle
*Tomatoes (fresh or canned - drained) (optional)

Preheat oven to a reasonable temperature (350ish), rinse black beans, spread pesto on pizza crust enough to cover the crust you don't need a ton, add black beans, then tomatoes if you would like, then cover with as much mozzarella as you would like. Bake until cheese has melted and crust looks good enough to eat.

So if you have any simple recipes please let me know...variety is a good thing.

Cheap Living...

Here's are some of the cheap things I take advantage of to make my life a little bit more awesome for not much money...

TV

I have a great set of "bunny ears" (and I also live close to a lot of the stations), however let's be honest unless it's prime time, there's not a lot of good shows on. So my solution - I hook a S Video cable from my computer to my tv, along with a simple maybe $5 or $10, "Y Audio Cable".

<----"Y Audio Cable"

This audio cable plugs into the headphone jack and then to your tv...easy as pie.

So why do this? As most of us know, almost every network - including cable stations- show full length episodes online. So I bring up the website, hit full screen icon, then hit the presentation button on my computer and like something only God created...the tv show appears in all it's glory on my tv. If your tv does not have a S Video input or your computer does not have an S Video output you'll need to take a few extra steps (I did), but they're simple, don't be discouraged...go to radio pick there brains and tell them you want to do it for cheap even if it means a few more steps. They're smart.

My favorite websites for finding tv shows and movies outside of the network sites...hulu.com and http://video.tvguide.com/.

The library (in kansas city at least) has free checkout for all tv shows and they have a TON of shows on DVD (i.e. Friends, Alias, The Office).

READING

-The library...I know crazy concept.

-Also, I pick up all the free magazines I can get my hands on. Some of the best in KC are Urban Times (monthly), The Pitch (weekly), and Ink (weekly). You can find most of these on street corners in the downtown and westport area.

-Magazine subscriptions are also a great idea...figure out what your favorite magazines are and most likely getting a subscription is WAY cheaper then buying them at the grocery store. A handy trick with getting the best price...look for the little cards in the magazines - those seem to have better deals then looking online.

-Also, the library is great for magazines as well...I like to go to the Plaza library get a magazine sit by the huge windows that look out over the plaza...AWESOME.

-A really simple idea...swap magazines with friends. We stock pile our old magazines as if we're going to reference them again later, but do we ever?? I only have one friend that does, and she's a designer...so for normal human beings...we should give our old magazines to friends.

-When I want to buy current magazines I go to Half Price Books, they sell used magazines for either half of the cover price or $1 if there is no cover price. I very very frequently find current magazines...people who get subscriptions as we know get them the month/week before they hit the news stand, once they're done reading they bring them in...and are there in time for the month or week they're scheduled to hit the stands. The one in westport has a HUGE selection.

OTHER

I play board games...love it. A couple options I've taken for acquiring board games, graciously take the ones off my parents hands they don't want any more, garage sales, and shop sales. Also, borrow friends games...sharing is a good thing. I like to play at my apartment or coffee shops. On that note, I order tea when I go to shops for a cheap drink or buy a really cheap thing of food like the dollar bagel at one of the shops I go to.

I like to go to parks, play catch, walk around the plaza, hangout at Barnes and Noble, shop at thrift stores, shop on craigslist.com...the list goes on.

As I remember all the other little things I do, I'll try to remember to put them on here to share!