motivation where art thou?

motivation is nil today.

so instead of doing homework and being a studious person (which is probably better because i have three papers due by saturday... but i have all day tomorrow to write them, so no worries! at least not until saturday afternoon...) i have been sitting on my couch doing nothing. and i mean pretty much literally nothing.

well, i made some tomato soup.

been there. done that.

i did discover this website though... so far it has been fairly entertaining.

and i have also become obsessed with http://pinterest.com/... not that i have my own account, but i could really spend days looking through profiles.

and if you are really looking for a way to waste time... um... i mean get good ideas... check out http://craftgawker.com/. or better yet http://foodgawker.com/. i can't get on without ending up baking something.

so you want to know why there have been no new pictures lately?

my camera appears to have gotten itself lost. again.

i think it is a sign for jess to go and get herself a new camera.

waddya think?

and finally - for the grand finale of my day of doing absolutely nothing productive (ok, you gotta understand that i did actually go to class, take a test, and finished all of my homework for my understanding DNA class...) i visited my best friend youtube.

after last night, i wanted to watch more of garrett sherwood. (the guy that helped come up with deep love? yeah, i'm kinda in love.)

and this was another one of the contestants from last poet standing a couple of weeks ago. skyler didn't win, but i really liked his style. and i really liked this poem. :) it kind of reminded me of that george strait song, "check yes or no."

so to my future someone: love me like we're in second grade.

and just for the heck of it. (speaking of future "someones")

i think i've decided what i want to make tonight.

curse you foodgawker!

peanut butter cup cupcakes

(photo from http://www.mybakingaddiction.com/peanut-butter-cup-cupcakes/)

for the cupcakes

ingredients

1 (18.25 ounce) package devil’s food cake mix

1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix

1 cup sour cream

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 tablespoon instant espresso granules dissolved in 1/2 cup warm water

24 reese’s miniatures; frozen (this prevents them from disappearing into the batter)

directions

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees F. line muffin tin with paper liners or spray with non-stick cooking spray.

2. in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, eggs, vanilla and espresso water mixture. beat for about two minutes on medium speed until well combined.

3. using a large cookie scoop, distribute the batter between 24 muffin wells; about 3 tablespoons of batter per well. press one frozen reese’s miniature into the center of each cupcake.

4. bake in preheated oven for 18-22 minutes or until the tops of the cakes spring back when lightly touched. there will be a small sink hole in the top of the cupcakes from the reese’s miniatures, that’s okay – you’ll cover that with frosting. allow cupcakes to cool inside muffin tins for about 10 minutes.

5. remove cupcakes from muffin tins and allow to fully cool on a wire rack. once cupcakes are cool, prepare your frosting.

for the peanut butter buttercream frosting

ingredients

3 sticks unsalted butter, softened

1 cup creamy peanut butter

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

2 pounds confectioners’ sugar, sifted

6-8 tablespoons heavy cream (if using milk, amount will be less)

directions

1. in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, cream butter and peanut butter on medium speed until fluffy. turn your mixer down to low speed and slowly add in the confectioner’s sugar, and continue mixing until well blended.

2. add vanilla and 4 tablespoons of heavy cream. blend on low speed until moistened. add an additional 1 to 4 tablespoons of heavy cream until you reach the desired consistency. beat at high speed until frosting is smooth and fluffy

3. pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes and finish with chopped reese’s peanut butter cups.

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i am grateful for a phone call from a friend.

that lets me know that she still loves me.

i'm going to pass this one on.

first day of spring. yeah right.

i really should get out of this sh-lump...

i kinda feel like a big, fat lump.

:)

which is good since i got most of my homework done! hoo-rah! (this only means that i spent most of my day in the library today, but if that means i can leave on thursday... bring on the

pain!) but my roommaties and i are gonna watch across the universe. never seen it before. but i love the soundtrack! so i'm pretty excited.

and... get this: we are going to see a wicked awesome folk opera! tell me that doesn't sound amazing right? we went to see the last poet standing (and i am pretty sure that i am diggin' a sentimental man right now... one that writes me poems and sings to me every night. yes... yet for some reason, i seem to get to the fruit loops. i hope that doesn't say anything about me!) the guy that one wrote the opera. i think i'm in love.

i've always enjoyed poetry, but i never could seem to make mine rhyme! tonight gave me hope.

they don't always need to rhyme! huzzah!

in one of the poems the guy talked about trying to cover all of the stars with his fingers... i love poetry so much. i always wish that i could write like that.

but practice practice practice!

we went and helped out a friend take pictures earlier, because he needed models (i know right?) to take pictures for a class. so we graciously obliged him.

despite the bitter cold, spontaneous snow (did or didn't spring start yesterday???) we got to climb on trains!!!

these pictures definitely make us look more awesome than we are.

good job buddy!

on another note, i got the pictures from the epic bike ride we took on sunday!

be very jealous.

she's my favorite...

i really thought i was gonna fall and die.

hott stuff on wheels!

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oh spring!

how i've missed you.

meltation: my new word for melting snow (just cuz it sounds weird)

i know i'm late!

i was going to post this yesterday i swear!

but procrastination (mainly attributed to laziness) got the best of me.

actually, i didn't want to post anything until i got this done.

we were wandering through the store getting root beer floats

...when yours truly had a brain blast!

and this amazing stop-motion film was born!

don't laugh.

we may be 20 years old but we still like playing with playdough.

so i don't always finish the bananas i buy...

and so i have random bananas in the freezer.

i think my roommates hate me.

but i got rid of most of them yesterday!

(there are only 2 left now...)

oatmeal banana bread (or cake)

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 tsp baking soda

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 heaping tsp ground cinnamon

3-4 ripe bananas, mashed

1/3 cup apple sauce

1/4 cup coconut oil

2 eggs

1/2 cup honey

2 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of sea salt

preheat oven to 350

in a mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients (flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt and cinnamon)

in a separate bowl mix together the remaining ingredients until thoroughly mixed

mix the wet into the dry

mix until well blended

grease a 9x13 in pan

pour batter into the pan and distribute evenly with a spatula

place in the middle of the oven and bake for 40 minutes or until lightly brown on top, firm to the touch and a toothpick comes out clean

option: chocolate chips! add about 1/2 cup once batter is mixed. that turns this from banana bread into banana cake... (i'm pretty sure that it was cake to begin with...)

so somewhat healthy... i kicked myself after i made it because i made it with white flour and i had whole wheat flower in my cupboard the whole time!

blast!

til we meet again mr. banana bread...

we also threw these little puppies together.

you really can't go wrong with martha stewart.

ever.

i just bought her comfort foods cookbook online... i haven't had the chance to try it yet, but i was looking over the recipes in there and salivating even more every time i turned the page.

cook books are not good for me.

you enable a alcoholic by buying them a drink, you give me a cookbook and i'm sunk.

just leave me alone for the next few hours cuz i'm a gonner!

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i love good poetry!

try this... or this... or the best play in the world.

and the coolest condiment

(and best color) in the whole universe!

i used to hate it.

but now i love it!

(i also went to d.i. yesterday.)

it was bad.

but ooooooooh so good!

but more about that later...