Getting in the Holiday Spirit with Eggnog!

At this time of year I'm always making eggnog with my family. It's one of my favorite parts of the holidays. Now for those of you who are thinking "I don't like eggnog," bare in mind that store bought eggnog is nothing like the kind you make at home. It's delicious, light, creamy, and frothy.


Here's my 'til now secret (don't tell my dad) Family Recipe:
1 1/2 cups of milk
3 "eggs" (I highly recommend using a carton of egg beaters or better'n'eggs or the like because it is pasteurized. The eggs do not get cooked saw regular fresh eggs pose a health risk, and the egg beaters are much safer.)
3 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp of vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp nutmeg

Just put all of the ingredients in a leak-proof container and shake it up until it gets frothy. Then enjoy!
If you do not drink it right away, just shake it again before you do, so it doesn't loose its foam.



I made it last night and got a lot of positive feedback. I didn't have nutmeg, but for some reason I had allspice so I used that (btw I love allspice. It's a very distinct flavor that is in gingerbread), but you could also use cinnamon. You could use almond/soy instead of regular milk or substitute stevia or agave for the sugar. I don't know of any vegan egg alternatives, but I'm sure they exist because Lula's (a vegan ice cream shop in the East Village) has an "egg cream".

DIY gift wrap- Sweet Paul Magazine

This Magazine has all kinds of fun stuff! Most of it can't be down in a dorm, but this DIY gift wrap certainly can:

Sweet Paul Magazine - Winter 2011 - Page 28-29

Tasty Tidbit- Be creative at the dining hall!

1) The salad bar can be used for more than just salads: use salad bar ingredients to make a delicious and healthy wrap. Wraps are also great because they're easy to sneak out if you need to eat on the go. I sometimes use ingredients from the main entree area for salads and wraps as well, specifically the salsa and sour cream they sometimes put out. (My favorite dining hall section cross-over, and guilty pleasure is ice cream and waffles, which are both available all day long!)

2) Be a cafeteria clepto: it's ok to sneak some food out of the dining hall, especially if you have an unlimited meal plan. I take bread to make sandwiches in my room, and today I took some chickpeas to make some humus (which I will post about soon). I also take fruit quite often. I like to take bananas and freeze them for Banilla Soft-serve (which is apparently now a proper noun because I capitalized it). I'll probably post about that at some point, too. I will sometimes take meals to go if I'm headed somewhere where food won't be easily available, like my 5 hour long costume practicum class.

3) See what made to order foods are offered: These foods are not necessarily healthy, but can certainly add variety to your diet. My cafeteria offers omlettes with a ton of topping choices, and also an option for egg whites ate breakfast time. They also offer a bunch of grill items from 2-4pm including burgers, fries, and my favorite (the only one I've actually ordered), grilled cheese. Like I said, not healthy per say, but the food tends to taste better than they're typical stuff.

Makin Guacamole!!

So guacamole is a super easy, healthy and delicious snack that also happens to be perfect for sharing! That's why I'm making it my first post. It's my second week of school and I've made guacamole 3 times, and guess what, the people on my floor love me for it!

All you really need is an avocado and salt, but if you want to get fancy add onion, lime or lemon, and if your really fancy, cilantro. My favorite chips to use are anything Trader Joe's brand because they're always non-GMO and still affordable (I love Trader Joe's!! If you don't know what GMO is I'll post an explanation about that soon. It changed the way I look at food!).

The avocados can get a bit expensive, so if you can, have everybody chip in a dollar or so. It cost a little less than $6 for 2 avocados, an onion, and a lime, and I already had salt. I opted not to spend three dollars on a big bunch of cilantro that would barely be used, but it does add to the taste of the guac, so if you wanna splurge more power to you.

So treat your floor-mates to something much yummier than most (if not all) of the stuff they've been eating from the dining hall!