"American Classic" Breakfast ;

>> Before i begin with my food entry,
i would like to thank Chrysta  for the give away prize !
and Deepa Praveen for The Lovely Blog award !
Thank you both, for these gifts~
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Now, i just started working at Puma, and i guess the morning shifts VS my sleeping schedule is really getting to me,
i normally stay up until 7am ! but work requires me to be AT work by 8:30am.
So, you can imagine how that would be difficult to adjust to, haha, but i noticed that having a big filling breakfast usually perks me up enough to get through the day.
i was in the mood for an "American Classic" breakfast; so thats exactly what i ended up making, with a side of fresh cut mangoes
(since im still craving for them like crazy).
But, unlike most health-cautious people, a protein shake just doesnt cut it for me, i need to feel crunchy, savory, hot, or spicy FOOD between my teeth to feel full & satisfied. its just how i am, anything otherwise sounds depressing .. haha.

A Huge Hearty Breakfast
gotta indulge once in a while right?

- 1 Slice of Toast, halved

- 1 Over-easy Egg Fried

- 2 Strips of Bacon

- 1 Sausage Pattie

- 1 Mango Sliced

Oh, and an update with my baby plants;
The Baby Tomato plant hasnt shown any signs of fruit yet, but it has shot up like a weed! its over a foot tall now, when it was only about 7 inches tall when i first bought it a couple weeks ago.
The Strawberry Plant however, is growing MORE fruit, & what was once green berries are now almost ready for picking, as blushing red berries. i cant wait !

Strawberry Plant

Tomato Plant

Oh, and another hobby i just got back into is Drawing, this time i drew my best friend, Tiffany.
Its an old picture of us, but its one of my favorites, it was right after we ate at Red Robbins a couple years ago, we grabbed a couple of their balloons that they always had floating around their restaurant,
as we left; and continued to walk around the shopping plaza, we were sucking the helium out of the balloons and talking to each other in chip-munk voices, cracking up at the ridiculous high pitched noises that were escaping our throats.

Me & Tiff
Ahh, Tiff, im sorry if this looks terrible,
im just starting to get back into drawing
so bear with me. haha
(atleast this looks better than my previous
drawing of Kevin, (post below.))
haha

& a note to kevin's mom ;
PLEASE, SPANK KEVIN FOR PICKING ON ME !
he keeps telling me to shuuut up  :'(

A Plateful of Sunshine ;

With the catastrophe going on in Japan, the world has seemed to have dimmed in color a bit..
parts of California has been affected by the Tsunami as well,
and im hearing about the major issues in Japan's Fukushima Neuclear Power Plants;
There is radiation that has been detected in Japan, and the radiation cloud could drift over here as well.
Sigh..
im in "coward mode" right now, and not looking up any more information on the topic,
i just want some color back into the world, or specifically, MY world.
Here are a few sparkling tid-bits of my life.
1.  ive been craving Mangoes & Strawberries like its nobodies buisness ! Atleast theyre very colorfully pretty & healthy right? Not to mention,  absolutely delicious !

Heart Shaped Pancakes with Mangoes & Strawberries.
check out my Vanilla Pancake Recipe by clicking here .
eating a plate of sunshine to start your day really chases away
the gloom blues.

2. i have contributed a donation into the RED CROSS, to help aid Japan.
3. ive just recently been hired to work at Puma, the Athletic clothing store (with the helping hand of Brandon) and the thing thats so great about it, are my co-workers, theyre such happy, easy-going individuals. and better yet,  Puma  supplies me with FREE clothes & shoes, every.. season i believe? to keep up to date with their latest fashion, AND in addition to that, i also get a 60% discount on all store items! yay.
4. My baby Tomato & Strawberry plants are growing healthy & happily!

The Strawberry Plant
its finally showing fruit !
5 little green berries, can you see them?
i cant wait till they start turing a pretty ruby color  ~

5. & i wanted to specifically thank Kevins mother for a very generous & heart felt offer, & to let her know coco is actually completely useless in warning me with worldly catastrophes.. haha, but he says hello !

My Dog; Coco & His Squished Face
adorable, aint he?

National Pancake Week ;

i forgot to post pancakes for National Pancake Week,
so im posting a few pictures now.
i honestly dont like pancakes very much... im more of a Waffles kinda gal.
but i DO like french pancakes (Crepes) !
or, well.. in this case " Swedish Pancakes".
My step-father is a swedish man, and he doesnt enjoy pancakes much either,
especially when he has the option of having crepes instead.
hehe.
So a typical Swedish pancake is a thin crepe-like pancake, & instead of adding syrups, fruit, or whipping cream, 
lingon berry Jam is used, with maybe a small scoop of vanilla ice-cream.

Swedish Pancakes

w/ Lingon Berry Jam & Vanilla Ice-cream

Recipe;

- 1 1/2 cup sifted all purpose flour

- 2 eggs

- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 cup sugar

- 3/4 cup water

- 2 tbs vanilla extract

- 1/4 tsp salt

- 2 tbs melted butter

- spoonful of lingon berry jam

- spoon ful of vanilla icecream
- powdered sugar to sprinkle (optional)

Combine the first 7 ingredients together, it should

be a watery batter. Add a little butter in your large
non-stick pan, (you dont want soggy pancakes)
over medium high heat, & Pour a ladle-full of batter.

Spread your batter by moving your pan in the air

to distribute the batter over the surface area.

Once it starts to crisp, flip it.

(The other side doesnt have to cook for long.)

Once both sides are browned, ENJOY ~
*Makes about 4-5 crepes

Swedish Pancake
w/ Lingon berry jam, Vanilla ice-cream & blueberries

*ON A SIDE NOTE
i sent Kevin a container of home-made Chocolate Chip
Pancake Mix (his favorite). All he had to do was add
the liquid ingredients & cook.
Buuuut... he ended up mixing the batter for like 20 mins
to get "rid of the lumps" & ended up melting the chocolate
chips. HAHAHA ! oh hes so funny~
His first attempt at making pancakes !
(during national pancake week nonetheless)
Lets give him a hand!
(i personally think this looks more like a steak..)

Healthy ice-cream ?! ;

For all the ice-cream lovers out there,

im sure you've heard the phrase "i wish i could have icecream for breakfast"

right ?

Well, heres a healthy breakfast ice-cream !

My Frozen Banana with Yogurt & Cereal
& since today is national pancake day,
heres my link to my Vanilla Pancake Recipe.

My Frozen Bananas !

These were delicious!

Naturally sweet from the yogurt & fruit.

and a fun way to have my breakfast~

First Steps

Recipe ;

- 1 banana (cut in half)

- 2 lollipop sticks

- 1 cup of yogurt (any flavor)

- 1 cup of cereal (your choice)

Carefully insert the lollipop stick into the banana halfway.

With a spoon, gently & evenly spread your yogurt over the 

banana completely. Sprinkle or Roll your banana over

cereal pieces. & Place in freezer for 20 mins.

Enjoy your guilt-less ice-cream breakfast!

Rainbow Fruitloop-sicle.

i used 3 different types of cereal;

Fruitloops, Lucky Charms, & Honey Nut Cheerios.

My little brothers love Fruitloops & Lucky Charms cereal,

while my parents enjoy Cheerios. 

Making a Stand
This step isnt necessary, but instead of
freezing them on a plate, i had some
styrofoam lying around from making
my Gingerbread & Cake Lollipops
last Christmas, so i used this to keep my
bananas upright.

Frozen Bananas

Here they are, 20 minutes later, completely frozen.
Yum !

30 Seconds Before it Disappeared
i managed to take 1 more picture before these babies
were devoured.
Breakfast Frozen Treats? A SUCESS !

Astro Boy & Chocolate Covered Strawberries ;

Unfortunately, i have never seen a single episode of Astro Boy in my life,
but it was requested by a very talented Artist ; Arlyn.
Hes an AMAZING artist and creator of  Ogre Shop 
(click the link & check out his amazing work !)

Astro Boy
Requested by & Dedicated to: Arlyn
i hope i didnt mess up on his face too much!
his facial features took me forever to cut out
- insert crying noises here-
So Astro Boy is resting on a mushroom omelet, with a tiny

little heart stuck on a pea. (hoho)

The top left corner is a flowered zucchini sushi roll,

& the right is filled with red onion lace, Peas & Carrot mini

skewers, sliced strawberries & a zucchini checked slice.

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On another note, this morning i also had a very delicious out-of-the-ordinary breakfast.
Besides devouring Astro Boy, i also made CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRIES!
They were delicious !
i normally dislike sweets, and i dislike chocolates ..
that is... until my "monthly" comes by, then i get chocolate & sugar cravings..hehe
SOoo, being in the mood for something sweet,
i found a few sad looking strawberries in my fridge, that were on the verge of becoming over-ripe,
i melted some dark chocolate Candy melts & some white chocolate chips & tada!
There were perfect 7 strawberries, just the same amount of house-members i have at home.
so i made one for my 4 younger brothers, my mother & step-dad, they disappeared in seconds!

Chocolate Covered Strawberries
haha you can see the process of me starting off with my
first one the Left,(which looks like total crap).
To finishing off with the far Right one & getting better!
i guess Practice does make perfect, haha

Big-Ass Chocolate Covered Strawberry
Not bad looking for my first time eh? haha
Making these are simple & oh-so-very delicious.

Recipe;

- Strawberries ; Washed  & Dried

- Dark Chocolate Candy Melts

- White Chocolate Chips

slowly melt the Chocolate Candy Melts in the microwave

in 15 second intervals, until completely melted.

Do the same with the white chocolate chips, and spoon into

a corner of a zip-lock bag, cut a TINY bit off the corner,

(you'll be using this to drizzle your berries).

Tip: Wet Strawberries will not allow chocolate to stick,

be sure to dry them off completely with a paper towel

before dipping.

Then Dip, Decorate, let it sit in the fridge for 5 mins

& ENJOYYY !

Citrus Salad

This morning, i was in the mood for some fruit.
so i decided to try out a citrus salad recipe.
i admit, it was a bit odd to have a "salad" without any sort of lettuce,
it seemed more like a bowl of fruit with a little bit of seasoning/dressing.
Regardless, it was enjoyable, & the combination of fresh fruits was
a great way to start off my morning~

Grapefruit & Orange Salad
let me warn you first,
if youre not a fan of the bitterness of a grapefruit,
then dont follow this recipe.

instead try using blood oranges, mangoes

 or perhaps even sweet strawberries, paired with oranges~

Recipe ;

- 1 grapefruit ; with peel cut

- 1 orange ; with peel cut

- few slices of onions

- 1 tbs extra virgin olive oil

- 2 tbs balsamic or red wine vinegar

-  3 Olives pitted & diced (optional)

- Sprinkle of chillie or cayenne powder

- Sprinkle of sea salt

Cut the peels off the fruit with a sharp knife,

& slice them horizontally. Add the rest of the ingredients,

& youre done! Enjoy ~

Vanilla Pancakes with Fruit & Cream ;

Haha, this pancake dish has got a funny story behind it.
basically, my friend Bao had a funny " dreaming experience " .
apparently he felt like a pancake .
Yes, a PAN-CAKE .
he then proceeded to tell me that he felt blueberries & kiwis
on top of him as well.
& after awhile, some whip-cream.
HAHA !
& better yet? he was a FLYING PANCAKE .
and he even came up with a dance to show me how a
flying pancake would look like.
- - - - -  -   -   -   -
How to do the Pancake Dance in 3 easy steps:
1. link fingers together.
2. keep hands vertical
3. & do the wave.
There ya` have it . the Pancake Dance. & the story behind this photo.

Dedicated to Bao
come over for some pancakes one day !

Vanilla Pancakes with Fruit & Cream
i made pancakes form scratch for the first time!
& these taste alot better than
the mix that comes in a box.
sorry Bisquick .

Recipe ;
-1 1/2cups all purpose flour

- 3 1/2 tsp baking powder

- 1 tsp salt

- 2 tbs white sugar

- 3 tbs vanilla

- 1/3 cup milk (add a bit more for thinner cakes.)

- 1 egg

- 4 tbs melted butter

- whip-cream (optional)

- your favorite blend of fruit (optional)

In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients. 

(Sift through the flour for more softer pancakes)

Then add the egg, melted butter, & milk. Mix well &
cook over medium-high griddle,
until brown on both sides.

*Serves : 4

Cooking for Man & His Best Friend ;

So, Hobby Farms sent me a contract this week,

and it stipulated that i had to cook 12 of their recipes.
( which ive finally completed ! )

Here are the pictures for the last 7 ;

"Chicken & Dumpling Casserole" (Hobby Farms Edited)
ive always wanted to try this recipe, and now i finally had
a chance to try it out. the original recipe for this left the
casserole a bit on the runny side, when i was expecting
thick, bubbly, creamy, goodness, like how a real casserole
should be.  So heres my improved version on this dish;

Recipe ;
- 3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, uncooked.
- 1 cup finely chopped onion
- 1 cup coarsely chopped celery

- 1 cup thinly sliced carrots

- 2 tbs of dried sage

- 1 packet of gravy mix

- 1 cup of cheddar cheese

- 2 cups of chicken broth

Recipe for Dumpling ;

- 1/2 cup milk

- 2 tbs veggie oil

- 1 cup flour

- 2 tsp. baking powder

- 1 tsp salt

whisk the milk & oil first, and gradually stir in the dry

ingredients for the dumplings.  Set aside.

Cut each chicken breast in half, and place them in a greased

casserole dish (8 x 8 inch glass dish) . Sprinkle half of the

gravy mix over the chicken, and cover the chicken with

carrots, onion, and celery. Sprinkle the cheese, sage & pepper

over the vegetables, and pour broth over all.

Distribute  2 inch balls of dumpling dough evenly over the

casserole, cover tightly with foil & bake at 325 degrees F

for 90 mins, or until the dumplings are slightly browned.

*Serves 4

"Cream of Pumpkin Soup" (Hobby Farms Recipe Edited)
if youre a pumpkin lover or just simply looking for a
holiday dish, try this out.

Recipe ;
- 1 onion thinly sliced
- 2 tbs butter
- 1 1/2 cups orange juice

- 2 1/2 cups of cooked, mashed pumpkin

- 2 cups of chicken broth

- 1 tsp salt

- 1 tsp pepper

- 1 tsp nutmeg

- 1 cup of cream

- 1/2 tsp cinnamon

- 1/4 cup sour cream for garnish (optional)

- 1/4 cup toasted walnut halves (optional)

In a large sauce pan, sauté onion in butter until soft.

Add in OJ, pumpkin, broth & seasonings. Simmer for 20min

& remove from heat. Purée in a blender until smooth.  Return

soup to the sauce pan and stir in cream, place over medium

heat for 5 mins, careful to not boil. Garnish each bowl with

a swirl of sour cream & walnuts halves.

"Breakfast Wraps w/ Turkey Ham" (Hobby Farms Recipe edited)
This Breakfast wrap was certainly a yummy way to start
my morning.~
but this was defiantly too fat to wrap. haha !

Recipe ;
- 3 eggs
- 3 tbs of butter (divided into 2 portions)
- 1/4 cup of red or yellow bell peppers, seeded & diced

- 1/4 cup of cilantro

- 1/4 cup onions

- 1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar or pepper jack cheese

-  2 tbs of milk

-  1 1/4 cup of turkey ham

- 1 medium tomato diced

- salt & pepper to season

Melt one portion of the butter in a frying pan.

Whisk the eggs with the milk, & scramble.

season with salt & pepper if desired. 

in another pan, melt the final portion of the butter &

cook the bell peppers & onions until soft,

then add ham. Cook until the Ham is browned & the

bell peppers & onions are tender.

warm up the tortillas by placing a damp napkin.

over the wrap & microwave for 10 seconds.

The Wrap should be soft & warm, sprinkle cheese over the wrap,

and microwave for another 15 seconds (without the damp napkin)

cheese should be melted bubbly goodness ~

Now, just pile on your ingredients and make your perfect

breakfast burrito !

" Cornbread " (Hobby Farms recipe edited)
This cornbread recipe wasnt too bad, but i personally
would of liked it to be a little bit sweeter & with
corn pieces in mine.
so, here is an edited version of my recipe for cornbread~

Recipe ;
- 2 cups of corn meal
- 2 cups of all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups of sugar
- 7 1/4 tsp. baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt

- 2  1/2 cups milk

- 3 large eggs well beaten

- 2 1/2 tbs of butter

- 1 cup of canned corn; drained.

Mix the dry ingredients together, & add the wet ingredients

together, fold the corn into the mixture.

Bake at 425 degrees F for 20 min. or until golden brown

to double-check for doneness, insert a toothpick in

the thickest part, if the toothpick comes out clean, its done.

Lentil Soup w/ Turkey Sausage (Hobby Farms edited)
i personally enjoyed this soup. it was hearty and satisfying.
a small bowl of this, easily filled me up. altho i would of
used some sort of spicy italian sausage VS the turkey.

Recipe ;
- 1/2 pound of dried brown lentils
- 1 large onion, quartered
- 1 large bayleaf

-  1 1/2 quart beef, chicken, or vegetable stock

- 1 pound of your favorite sausage brand, sliced 1/2 thick

- 2 potatoes, peel and cut into big chunks

- 1 cup of peeled and diced carrots

-  Salt ( depending on the salt content of your stock &

   sausage, you may prefer to not add additional salt.)

Be sure to wash the lentils first, remove any dirt or rocks from

them, and then transfer them into a big pot. Boil the lentils

in the Broth until soft ( NOT until theyre mush) about 1 hour.

Stirring occasionally.

While lentils are cooking prepare the sausage according to

the package. set aside.

Add the potatoes, carrots, and sausage and simmer until

vegetables & lentils are tender. Stir occasionally and

adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve hot.

*Serves about 4

"Cheesy Chicken Dog Cookies"
My puppy loves these ! he`ll hold one between his teeth &
run over to a spot to eat it alone in peace. ahaha !
(picture below)

Recipe ;
- 2 cups quick-cooking oats
- 6 chicken buillion cubes (low sodium)
- 1/2 cup margarine

- 1 cup boiling water

- 2 cups whole wheat flour

- 1 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

- 1 cup milk

- 2 eggs

- 3 tbs sugar

- 3 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese

- all purpose flour to sprinkle

Prehead the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 2 large cookie sheets

with non stick spray. Mis the oats, bullion cubes, & margarine

in a large bowl. Add the boiling water & allow oats to cook &

dissolve the bullion cubes. Add the remaining ingredients

except the all purpose flour. Mix & form the ingredients into a

big stiff dough ( add flour to stiffen if need.) Roll out the

dough to 1/2 inch thick & using a bone shaped cookie cutter,

cut out the cookie pieces and place on cookie sheets.

bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Let the cookies cool completely before offering treats.

"Apple Cinnamon Dog Bits" (Hobby Farms Recipe Edited)
oh my god, i thought these smelled JUST like apple pie!
i was tempted to eat one myself, which would actually
be okay, if you check out the ingredients, but i think
Coco would of been mad at me if i stole one of his treats~

Recipe ;
- 4 cups of whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup cornmeal
- 1 egg

- 2 tbs veggie oil

- 3 tbs cinnamon

- 2 apples grated

- 1 cup water

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except the apple &

water. Grate the apple into the mixture, then add the water.

Mix well until it forms a stiff dough,  (add more wheat-flour

if needed.) Roll out on a lightly floured surface and flatten

the dough to an 1/2 inch thickness. Take a knife and score

the dough horizontally & vertically to make a grid of

1 inch squares. Be careful not to cut through the dough

completely. Place the dough on a baking sheet that has

been greased. Bake at 325 degrees F for 1 hour, & Break

apart when cooled.

COCO! with a "Cheesy Chicken" doggie cookie~
hes running away to look for a "private" place to eat.
i think hes afraid ill take it away and eat it myself.
hehe~
oh, you might not be able to see it on here, but if you
click this image to see an enlarged version, you can
see a little cookie crumb stuck to his nose. haha!
so cute ! i love him .