I’ve Been Bitten By the Pumpkin Bug (Recipe)

Date: September 16, 2013

Author: astottler

It’s not quite fall OFFICIALLY yet, but that doesn’t mean we have to wait to enjoy all the wonderful foods of fall. Ever since I developed my banana chocolate chip custard recipe, I’ve been brainstorming how I could use that base idea and transform it into a fall treat. And thus, Baby Pumpkin Pie was born!

One of my favorite pumpkin pie recipes (aka the only recipe I’ve made pumpkin pie from scratch with) is a crustless version. I like it so much, I even had it for my birthday one year because it’s less sugary than cake and I didn’t want that shot of sugar before a big test the next day. It ended up taking longer to bake than expected, so we were all impatient to dig in when it came out. So we hurried to stick the candles in and sing! Since the pie was still so hot, the candles completely melted, leaving spikes and drips of wax throughout the pie. Lesson learned!

This version is similar to that in that it is crustless; however, I guarantee you won’t have to wait long for this, as it can be made in the microwave-my favorite thing! Even better, it’s single serve and very low sugar. Enjoy!

Baby Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients

1/2 ripe banana

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

2 T egg whites

1/8 t baking powder

a pinch of salt

3/4 t packed brown sugar

1/2 t vanilla

1/2 t pumpkin pie spice

3/4 t cinnamon

Directions

1. In a microwave safe bowl, microwave the banana half for 30 seconds, and then mash.

2. Mix in all other ingredients.

3. Microwave for 2 minutes 15 seconds, or until cooked through (microwaves will vary).

4. Top with whipped cream and enjoy!

What is your favorite fall food?

MIMM-Banana Chocolate Chip Custard

Date: August 26, 2013

Author: astottler

Categories: Uncategorized

Hi friends! I originally had another post planned for today, but I’ve been hinting at a recipe for quite some time now, and it’s finally ready! What could be more marvelous? I hardly ever make up my own recipe so I think that qualifies for an entire MIMM post. Thanks Katie!

Microwave Banana Chocolate Chip Custard

Ingredients:

1 ripe banana
1 T milk (I used unsweetened vanilla almond)
1/4 cup liquid egg whites of 1 egg
pinch of salt
1/8 t baking powder
2 T bittersweet chocolate chips (or any chocolate chips)

Instructions:

1. In a bowl, microwave peeled banana for 30 seconds.

2. Mash banana.

3. Add milk and stir.

4. Add all other ingredients except chocolate chips and mix well.

5. Stir in chocolate chips.

6. Microwave on high for 1:15 or until cooked through.

Note: Different bowls and microwaves may take different time, so check every 30 seconds or so just in case.

Enjoy! This is delicious, simple, and low sugar. Plus-it’s dorm room friendly! My dining halls at school always have bananas which are easy to grab for later, so this is perfect! To new college students-I also highly recommend keeping a carton of liquid egg whites (such as egg beaters) around- they make an easy protein rich meal any time,plus there’s no shell to sit in your trash can for weeks (at least if you’re me and don’t take out your trash NEARLY enough).

If you want a silkier texture, add an extra tablespoon of milk-it might take a little longer to cook, so monitor that.

Try this! It will make your Monday a little more marvelous- I promise 🙂

The Great Microwave Scare and Something New

Date: May 23, 2013

Author: astottler

Categories: Uncategorized

Hello everyone! I am loving reading everybody’s posts about BLEND. I am determined to go next year, even if it means doing a ton of random Psych studies for the money! Experiments with my brain? BRING IT ON.

So last night after I posted, I was sitting on my bed attempting to do homework. I had a lot on my mind, and could not sit still. I decided, gym at 9 pm? Why not? Ok, now looking back on it, this doesn’t really seem too late, but I’m definitely an early morning workout kind of girl. But honestly, nothing sounded better than spinning my heart out. I hoped on a bike, shuffled my Now That’s What I Call Music 45 album, and just had such a great time. It was on shuffle, but all the songs came up perfectly for my profile. I was there for about 45 minutes.

While this was something I really needed, I regretted my decision just a tad when my alarm went off at 7 to go lift weights….but I’m glad I got up! I did this tried and true workout:While I love it, I think it is time to start upping the weight on those squats.

And being the good blogger that I am, I ate semi-more interesting things today, and photographed a majority of them!Plain Greek yogurt, frozen blackberries, and granola with added raisins. It was a different type of granola at the dining hall, and I’m not a fan. It was too sweet. Granted, the other type probably has too much sugar for me as well, but whatever. For lunch, I bought a super expensive salad in an effort to begin to use up my outrageous amount of meal plan dollars. I had half for lunch, with the plan of having the other half for dinner. (That didn’t happen, as you shall see.)

I had plans to run with my friend after class, but she was feeling sick and I wanted a nap. And a mango. In lieu of running today, we made new plans to run tomorrow evening. That’s my fruit knife, which I love. I seriously only use it for fruit though, not that I’m complaining!

My snack ended up being larger than planned, and included some bites of my now-soggy salad, banana bread, and another mango (the above mango is tiny, but you can’t tell from the picture). Oh, and some yogurt!Frozen banana bread. Since the school year is ending, I’m trying to eat up my freezer!

Enter microwave woes. For some reason, our microwave wasn’t working, so I went downstairs to use the dorm one-which, by the way, is super janky. And kind of gross. But it got the job done!

When my roommate got back, we looked a bit closer into the microwave problem. It appeared that the plug it was attached to was dead, because when we connected my lamp to it, it would not turn on. After further investigation, we finally discovered the root of the problem. The whole octopus the fridge and microwave were connected to was unplugged. Yayyy smart college students. I’m just glad we realized this when we did! The fridge is fullll.

I also received my housing assignment for next year! I’m actually super happy with where we are, although it is technically not considered very good housing. We got a pretty good draw number, but we had a huge draw group (8 people). (Oh, and the housing is a draw- you rank your top choices and they draw numbers.) But the dorm we are in is solid- centrally located, pretty close to 2 decent dining halls, and most importantly, very close to the gym. Because when I’m biking to the gym to go to a Spin class, and I don’t want the extra few hundred feet. You know.

I decided to make dinner in my dorm, since we had a now fully functioning microwave. I ran into the dining hall for spinach, and left with a slice of cinnamon raisin toast as well. This stuff is seriously so good! And then I whipped up some guac from the avocados from my big, and a packet of guacamole mix. I the cooked egg whites in the microwave with a ton of spinach, and topped the eggs with guacamole. Have I ever told you guys I like avocados? No?

“Dessert” was more freezer cleaning- frozen blueberries and a Paleo Pumpkin sort-of-bread creation, x2 (because it’s half a slice!).Whooo check out the ice crystals on those blueberries!

Well, that’s about all I have for you guys. I’m currently realizing that my abs are sore….Being the weirdo that I am, I really love that feeling! So if you guys have any great sore abs workouts, send them my way!