Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Oatmeal

I don't know about you, but all of this "wind chill" action has really been cramping my style lately. It takes so long to scrape the ice off of my car and get it warmed up in the AM that I'm starting to become concerned about the safety of my alarm clock. Seriously - if my 7:05am wake-up time has to be compromised solely so I can freeze to death, that little clock just might have to take a trip to "the farm."

As you can probably tell, I've been feeling a bit of hostility toward the cold weather lately. So, to counteract the situation, I've decided to start making oatmeal again. It's warm, filling, and so simple and comforting that it helps to calm me down in the morning.

This oatmeal is particularly delicious - especially because it happens to taste a lot like an oatmeal raisin cookie (which hopefully explains the redundancy in my "Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Oatmeal" title). I like making it for CH and myself on Saturday mornings, but it's quick enough that you could prepare it before work or school during the week as well.

So, enjoy - and stay warm (to hell with the wind chill)!

Vegan Puppy Chow

image borrowed from Pug Blog

Ah, yes, Puppy Chow...

It seems like the perfect "olive branch" to extend as my apology for being blog-sent (absent) for so long. And truthfully, while it has only been about 2 weeks since my last post, it feels more like an eternity.

Since my Jan. 8th (birthday!) blog entry, Winter Break has ended and I've returned to school. In fact, Monday marked the beginning of my last semester of law school, which means that the pressure is officially on. (Not as if it were ever "off" to begin with!)

Pink Lemonade Birthday Tartlets

"You know how I remember what day your birthday is?" my uncle asked me, fourteen years ago today.

"No, how?" I inquired, curious and excited about the fact that my uncle cared so much about my special day that he had actually developed a method for remembering it.

"You were born on the same day as Elvis," he announced. "So, when it's his birthday, that means it's yours, too."

Yea, it was a bit of a let-down - especially from the perspective of a slightly self-involved, 13-year-old girl.

Vegan Tostada Pizza

Ahhh...the Vegan Tostada Pizza. It's fresh, colorful, and delicious - not to mention the fact that it's another exceptional platform for a bit of Vegan Ranch Dressing - yay!

This pizza was born out of my adoration for black beans, specifically, and for pizza, generally. And the coolest thing is that it's completely versatile: Don't like black beans? Have pinto beans instead. No time for home-made salsa? Try the pre-made stuff. Not feelin' avocado today? Go ahead - skip it entirely.

Maple Corn Fritters

It's true - I've decided to try and get a little bit more organized for the new year. However, this "organization" - which despite taking place at the beginning of the year, and despite being something of a promise to myself - is NOT a resolution.

(You see, JD and resolutions don't get along all that well...)

So, whatever it's called, my goal includes:

1. Cleaning up the study
• (AKA: small room that CH and I delusionally call "The Study" to make our apartment sound bigger)
2. Recycling my growing collection of magazines/newspapers
• Of course, this includes saving/filing the good articles/recipes, too
  
3. Organizing my blog postings
• So far, this means instituting a weekly Saturday post for recipes that I've tried from other people's blogs
4. Instituting my own "Pantry Challenge"
• In other words: grocery shopping less/not at all for a period of time, yet to be determined

There you have it.