Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope your day was full of delicious food, football, and precious time with family.    I am so thankful to have spent Thanksgiving with my friend, Hannah, and her family.

What are you thankful for this year?

Pistachio Jello Salad

The holiday season is upon us, folks.  The radio is playing Christmas music, and shelves are stocked with decorations, chocolates, wreaths, and gift baskets. 

Thanksgiving is tomorrow, which means Christmas is right around the corner. I've always loved Christmas time, but I’m even more excited for it this year.  I feel like most years it just sneaks up on me and I barely have enough time to do my shopping, decorate the tree, and really appreciate the holiday spirit.  But the prospect of being home for the first time in nearly 4 months makes it really feel like Christmas.

With the holiday season comes a never-ending string of parties.  This recipe is super quick to throw together and makes a great side dish at any holiday gathering.  It has a light, refreshing flavor, and isn’t heavy like most other holiday foods.

What you need:

1 3.4 oz package of instant pistachio pudding

1 20 oz can crushed pineapple, juice reserved

2 C mini marshmallows

2 C Cool Whip topping

½ C chopped pistachios, pecans, or walnuts (optional)

What you do:

Combine the first four ingredients in a large bowl.  Stir in the chopped nuts while reserving some for the top.  Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour before serving.

What is On-the-Go?

You've probably been asking yourself, "what exactly is On-the-Go?"

I’ve mentioned it briefly before in this post, but in case you missed it, here’s a more thorough explanation.

We have 5 dining courts and 3 On-the-Go locations around campus in addition to some restaurants and a couple mini marts.  On-the-Go is an option where students can use their meal swipes to get food if they don’t have time to eat in the dining courts, or to use up extra swipes at the end of the week.  I primarily use it for the latter, and so I stock up on cereal, milk, chips, and Uncrustables.  Do you guys remember Uncrustables?  They are those round peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that have absolutely no nutritional value, but are delicious.  They were one of those foods I loved as a child but was seldom allowed to have.  But now that I’m in college, well…

I love On-the-Go because I am able to pick up extra snacks for myself and ingredients for my recipes without going to the store.  Hooray for convenience!

Bagel Pizzas

This recipe is embarrassingly simple. 

Like, I don’t know if it even counts as a recipe.  I didn’t even have to go to Walmart to buy ingredients.  Something easy and doesn’t require a trip to Walmart?  I’m all over that.

It’s starting to get cold.  And I don’t mean Arizona definition of cold.  We had our first snow this week and I walked to class in 18 degree weather.  Thankfully, I’ve actually found the cold to be tolerable.  Granted, it has only been a couple of weeks.  My opinion will probably change come January and February! 

For whatever reason, hot, thick crust, super cheesy pizza is one of my favorite foods to eat on cold days.  This recipe is an easy alternative for those times when you don’t want to order takeout.

What you need:

4 bagel halves

1/3 C pizza sauce, although it’s not an exact science.  You want to use enough so the    pizza isn’t dry.

1/3 C mozzarella cheese

            Note:  Shredded cheese would be ideal for this recipe, but string cheese can be substituted in a               pinch.  They have string cheese at On-the-Go, and because I’m super cheap, I decided to get it.        There’s something to be said about resourcefulness, right?

Toppings of your choice.  I decided to go with ham and pineapple.

What you do:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Spread the pizza sauce on the bagel halves.  You can leave a little rim around the edge to get that delicious crunchy crust.

Sprinkle on the cheese-the more the better!  Again, shredded cheese is best, but only because I find that it melts better.

Add any additional toppings you’d like.  Make it how you want!  You’re the boss here.

Place the bagels on an ungreased tray and pop them in the oven.  Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the cheese is golden brown.

Or, if you’re feeling really hungry, you can microwave the pizzas for 30-45 seconds, or until the cheese is melted.

Ssssoooooo cheesy.

Easy No-Frost Pudding Cake

I’m pretty easy to please.

I appreciate the simple things in life: a warm fire, fuzzy socks, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and naps on rainy days.  I like lounging on the beach, plain noodles, and walks through the neighborhood. There is a unique beauty in things that are simple, straightforward, and satisfying because of their simplicity. 

That sounded really deep considering this relates to the cake I made for you.  But seriously though, this cake is one of the easiest things I have ever made.  It is simple, yet satisfying in every way.  It’s nice and chocolatey, but not overly rich and sweet.  It is one of those things that’s best enjoyed in big pieces and served with a tall glass of milk.

I would encourage each of you to take a little break from the stress of daily life and take some time and enjoy the simple things.  Go take a walk outside and appreciate the birds chirping and the beautiful fall leaves.  Reread that book you’ve read over a dozen times.  Do a jigsaw puzzle.  Drink some tea or hot apple cider.  Whatever it is, take some time for the simple things in life.  Because more often than not, those are the things that bring us the most joy.

What you need:

1 (3.75 oz) package chocolate pudding (must be the cook and serve kind NOT instant)

            Note: I bought a 5 oz package, so I just eyeballed about 2/3 of the powder and used that. I combined the rest of the pudding with one cup of milk and saved that as a snack for later.

2 C milk

1 pckage chocolate cake mix

1 C chocolate chips

Chopped nuts, optional

What you do:

Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9x13 cake pan.

Combine pudding and milk in saucepan and heat over medium heat stirring constantly until it thickens and boils.

Remove from heat and stir in cake mix.  The batter will be thick.

Spread batter into the prepared cake pan and sprinkle chocolate chips over the top.  Add nuts if desired.  Don't worry if the batter is spread thin.  It will puff up like a charm in the oven.  

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  See, look how much better that looks. 

You can really use any combination of pudding, cake flavor, and toppings.  A good variation is to use a German Chocolate cake mix with coconut and pecans on the top. One time my mom used a butterscotch pudding and spice cake mix and sprinkled nuts on the top.  You don't even have to put anything on top- it just looks nicer.

Happy Halloween!

Hope your Halloween was full of fun, fright, and boatloads of candy!

I went to a legit barn dance for the first time!  It was a night with good music, good friends, lots of dancing, and an equal number of laughs.