Late night ponderings

I hesitate to write this post, but I don't really have anything else to do. (Well, that's not true. I could always study. HA! yeah right!!)

Any way, I was wondering, why do guys slap each other on the bum to say good job? Why can't they just high five or perform a manly fist bump? I can understand why they don't want to hug (although I don't understand why hugging is such a girly thing to begin with), but why the butt slap?

Also, have you ever noticed that girls almost always instinctively walk through doors before guys do? If guys and gals arrive at a door at the same time, usually the girl will open the door (that is, of course, unless the guy was brought up right and opens the door for her) and walk through first. I'm pretty sure no one ever told me I was supposed to walk through a door first. So where did I learn this behavior? Also, is this a "Southern" thing? If I had been brought up in The Great North, would I still walk through doors before guys?

And finally, corn chowder is the most delicious of all soups. The end.

Image courtesy of bn.com

Things I suck at

After having reviewed several of my older blog posts, I have decided that I suck at proof-reading. I think I would be a terrible editor and it's a good thing I'm not an english major. That is all.

Chocolate

Our ward decided to do a monthly cooking class hosted by different people each month. This past month, I volunteered to host and teach the class for February. In keeping with Valentine's Day, I decided to do a chocolate night. Here's what was on the menu:

• Chocolate dipped strawberries
• Oreo truffles
• Chocolate chocolate chip cookies
• Death by Chocolate

The ladies that came were hilarious! Perhaps it was the extra endorphins from the chocolate or the company, but everybody was laughing and having a great time! I think the hit of the night was the Death by Chocolate. It's my brother's favorite dessert. He always asks for it for his birthday. It's really easy. Just layer chocolate cake with chocolate sauce, chocolate pudding, whipped cream and heath bar bits. Just keep layering until you've run out of something!! The other thing that people loved the most (but told me about afterwards) were the chocolate chocolate chip cookies. I baked them off at the end and most people took them home to their families. I got the recipe from allrecipes.com (one of my favorite recipe sites). I think these were the best chocolate cookies I've ever had. Here's the link : Cookies! Make them. You'll love them!

Photo courtesy of allrecipes.com and foodie.blog.co.uk

KKC

I am crazy. Certifiable, if you ask me. I decided a few days ago to run a race. And not just any race, mind you. I ran the Krispy Kreme Challenge. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this spectacle, let me enlighten you. The Krispy Kreme Challenge, or KKC for short, was thought up by some drunk NCSU students a few years ago. They thought to themselves, wouldn't it be fun if we were to run from the belltower on campus to the Krispy Kreme two miles away, eat one dozen glazed donuts and then run back!? Well, needless to say, their inebriated idea came to life. 12 students ran it the first year. This year, in it's 5th go-round, more than 5000 people ran the race.


There are two categories that you can run the race in: Challenger (in which you have to eat ALL 12 donuts and then run back in under an hour) and Casual (in which you can eat as many donuts as you want, 12 being the limit, and finish whenever you can). I ran in the casual category. (I'm crazy, but not completely without some sense) I ran, ate on donut, then ran back. I finished the race in one hour and 22 minutes. I think I did alright for someone who hasn't run on a regular basis for a couple of months. :)

You can see the results here: http://www.krispykremechallenge.com/

People go all out for this race. They wear costumes and hats and even paint their bodies. It's craziness. This year I saw:

• people with inflatable tubes around their waists that were painted like donuts
• someone dressed as a cup of coffee
• a gorilla
• a viking
• several Evlis' (long live the King)
• Superman
• Supergirl
• Wonder Woman
• a team that ran without shirts and had painted letters on their chests to say Krispy Kreme
• someone that had a fake donut dangling in front of their head
• pirates
• pirates in a shopping cart
• guys in suits and tuxes
• girls in prom and wedding dresses (modified of course)
  
• and so many more
  

ESPN even covered the race. I don't know when the footage will air, but I'm sure it will be entertaining. The reporter covering the race actually ran it in his suit. It was pretty cool.

This was my very first road race and I have to say that I enjoyed it very much. Yes, I am not in shape and had not trained whatsoever for the race (having decided 3 days prior that I would do it), but I had so much fun!! And the post race high was incredible! I am definitely hooked. I've been thinking I might eventually work my way up to running a marathon!! I told you, I'm crazy. :)

Refried Beans and Dessert!

So here is the way I make my refried beans:

I typically will use a can of black beans, but you can use whatever beans you'd like or even make then from dried beans. I will drain and rinse the beans and the place in a food processor or blender to mush up the beans. Don't ever mush them or they'll be gummy. You can also do this with forks or a potato masher, but it takes a lot longer. After they have been sufficiently smushed, add them to a frying pan where you have softened some onions in oil. Mix the oil and onions together and just let it heat for a while. (This is a good step to do while you're other veggies are cooking) Near the end, I'll had seasonings, depending on what I'm using them for, but I almost always add salt, pepper and lime juice to taste. Delicious!!

Frozen Lime Dessert

• 2 cans of sweeten condensed milk (the really goopy kind)
• 1 small container of cool whip
• zest from 3 limes
  
• juice from 6-7 limes
• Some kind of crunchy cookie (something really crunchy because they're going to absorb moisture from the cool whip and milk mixture and if they're not really crunchy to start with, they will just be mush. Nilla Wafers will NOT work)

Mix most the juice from the limes and zest together with the sweetened condensed milk. Then fold in the cool whip. Have a taste. If it needs more lime, then add more lime. *Note: since this is a frozen dessert, the flavor of the lime will be muted so you want to add a little more than tastes good at room temperature* In a 9X9 pan, place a layer of cookies on the bottom. Add some of the frozen mixture. Repeat layering cookies and lime mixture, leaving enough of the lime stuff to be the top layer. Place this into the freezer for several hours prior to eating. When serving, garnish with cookies and lime zest and allow to soften ever so slightly prior to eating.

Well, I hope you enjoy this as l much as I do! I love limes!!



Photos courtesy of Whatscookingamerica.com and photobucket.com