Not moving…yet.

Well, I’m sticking with Blogger for a bit longer.  There are some nit-picky things that I haven’t found on WordPress that I LOVE on blogger, like the ability to scroll through all of the updated posts of the blogs I follow.  Also, it’s hard to customize the themes…I like the one I have, but I feel like most WordPress bloggers have that one.  I’m supposed to learn how to make my own site using WordPress over the next few weeks, so maybe once I have that figured out I’ll make the switch.  For now, though, go to myfancytuna.blogspot.com for all of my super awesome updates.

Picture Post!

Well, now I need to learn how to post pictures on WordPress.  Here are some tasty things I’ve posted on My Fancy Tuna in the past!

Chickpea Ragu

This is a chickpea ragu I made – it was basically a bed for broiled salmon.  Personally, I think it’s one of the prettiest dishes I’ve made.

Broiled Salmon

The salmon was pretty tasty, but I really liked the quality of this picture – I mean, I have a $70 Kodak digital camera, so I think this picture is pretty impressive.  Plus the salmon looks super flaky and tender.  Yum.

Oats in a Jar, or OIAJ

OIAJ are a food bloggers delight.  All you need is a 90-95% empty nut butter jar, some of your favorite oatmeal, and a spoon.  Peanut butter oatmeal heaven.

Spiced Nuts

These nuts (and chickpeas) were my first food “hit.”  I made them about a week into my food blogging adventure after seeing them on Everyday Italian for my sister’s birthday party.  People could not keep their hands out of the almond, pistachio and chickpea filled dish.

New Home for My Fancy Tuna??

Okay, so apparently WordPress is the shiz when it comes to blogging…both of my web design classes include lessons on WordPress.  Sooo if I end up liking this better than Blogger when all of this is said and done (and if there is an easy way to transfer all of my old posts here), then myfancytuna.blogspot.com may PERMANENTLY become myfancytuna.wordpress.com.

And perhaps I’ll even create my own website…something like, myfancytuna.com.  So prestigious, right?

Anyways, I’m currently baking some maple granola.  Just to add a little food goodness to this post.  Also, Alexi is making some egg in a tomato bake from Everyday Living with Martha Stewart.  Sounds pretty fancy, right?

It feels like an eternity since I’ve updated! Not too much has gone on ’round these parts. I successfully completed my first cooking food lab. Even though I only pressure cooked and microwaved carrots, I still had TONS of fun! My lab instructor even told me that I hold the knife and chop correctly!

I suppose that’s a lame thing to be proud of, but whatever. I thrive on praise in the school setting. I’m one of THOSE students.

I also might possibly be one of those students who switches her major halfway through college, resulting in a couple extra years of schooling. Schooling meaning two years worth of chemistry and biology.

Ugh. You know how I said my brain was like a glass of spilled milk when working with CSS? Well, I can’t even begin to describe what my brain looks like when around math/science. It implodes, that’s what it does. I just can’t stop imagining myself as a dietitian! If I end up switching, it will be a HUGE thing for me – usually I like to stick with stuff I am familiar with and understand. The dietetics major will be a bodacious unknown for me, but I think in the end it will be worth it!

Uh, anyways, now that I’ve shared my life’s story…

Anyways, back to my food lab. I tried a few new dishes that were FANTASTIC, like rhubarb crumble, sauteed bananas and curried fruit bake. Rhubarb crumble is like peach cobbler on crack. It was more tart than peach cobbler, but the sweet, decadent oatmeal topping made it ballin! Plus, our lab instructors put out some vanilla ice cream (which we didn’t have to evaluate, score!) to eat alongside the crumble. The sauteed bananas were probably a lot like bananas foster – just melt the butter in a saute pan, add sliced banana (cut long ways) and top with brown sugar. The sugar formed a deliciously crunchy crust that made the banana like heaven. Seriously. The curried fruit bake was interesting, but definitely good. I never would have thought to put curry with a fruit dessert. The rich, yellow color of the sauce was the best part, in my opinion.

My assignment for this week’s lab is much more exciting – Spinach Parmesan Pie and Cucumber and Bean Sprout Salad. Nothing too complicated, but both sound tasty!

In other news, I went to the Taste of Loganville on Friday. Apparently it’s the new wave of high school fundraisers – pretty much all of the high school’s sports teams worked the event. I’m not really sure what I was expecting out of this…perhaps a bigger variety of restaurants in a street festival setting?

Wrong. So wrong.

It was in my high school’s cafeteria. There were 12 restaurants, including Chili’s, Bojangles, Papa Johns and Texas Roadhouse. Okay, I’m being a little snobby here, but I was expecting a little more…oomph. And okay, it IS Loganville. We’re not exactly a bustling, hip city. Regardless, I still tried some awesome food and was even reunited with Bruster’s. Basically we were given 6 blue tickets for food and a red one for a drink. Trade a ticket for a food item. Easy as pie!

This was a Walnut Cranberry Pecan Salad from Doc Green’s (or Chey’s, I always get them mixed up). It looks really pretty, right? Well, it tasted super bland. The goat cheese was tasty, but other than that, this salad was entirely forgettable.

Red beans and rice, N. Carolina BBQ, and a teeny tiny super cute biscuit from Claude’s Off the Bayou (LOL at the name). This was superb, seriously. Apparently N. Carolina BBQ is tomato based, while GA BBQ is vinegar based. I guess I’m a BBQ novice because I didn’t know the sauce varied from state to state. Either way, the BBQ was really delicious and the pork was very tender, except for the crunchy skin pieces – yum!

After a mediocre plate of Chinese food and some delicious Cuban sandwich samples from Ray’s Cuban Grill, I decided it was time for dessert. I decided on this DIVINE piece of caramel cake from Sweet Aromas. Oh my gosh, I want to take a bath in the icing. It had a slight crust with a creamy, pillowy, sweet underside. The cake was tender, but was really a vehicle for the icing. I know I said I want to take a bath in the peanut sauce from Just Pho, but that’s only when I’m in a savory mood. When I want sweet, give me this icing.

BRUSTER’S!!!! I miss working there a lot sometimes. They didn’t bring my favorite flavor (chocolate raspberry truffle), so I “settled” on double chocolate chunk. It was so good that I didn’t take a picture of it until I was almost done.

Yeah, I wanted a hot dog after eating cake and ice cream. My dad gave me one of his tickets, so I decided to increase the size of my already large food baby and “buy” half a slaw dog. Topped with mustard, ketchup and lots of sauerkraut. Did you know that I love sauerkraut? I think I’ve expressed my love for it in a previous post. Anyways, a hot dog is a hot dog. But I do love sauerkraut!

Oh, and I was tagged by Chelsey! So, seven random things about myself……

1. I hate wearing jewelry. It just gets on my nerves.
2. I watched Titanic for the first time two years ago. I thought it was terrible.
3. I broke my leg by falling down the stairs when I was two.
4. Keira Knightley is my favorite actress…I think she’s so classy!
5. Anchorman is one of my favorite movies. I love that kind of humor.
6. I watch cartoons more than “real” shows. Spongebob is my favorite.
7. I am an anime fan. And I still play Pokemon on my Gameboy DS. No shame.

And I tag: Shelley, Camille, Sarah, Chelsea and Molly! GO FOR IT!!

Also, I’m using this in my roomie dinner this week. Scary, right?

Pho (pronounced like fo, like “fo’ sho!”) finally happened. After almost two months of saying, “Oh yeah, let’s get pho this weekend!” only to have someone suddenly go to PCB (whoops) or not have enough money or, well, whatever, WE FINALLY ATE PHO! We didn’t go to Kathy’s hometown like we originally planned because Chris came down with a cold, so Kathy, Adam and I met at a restaurant in Athens called Just Pho. I won’t lie, it doesn’t have much atmosphere at all – it’s in a shopping center next to a shut down Rite Aid and a Little Caesar’s. When you taste the food, though, none of that matters. The place was really hopping when we went, which kind of surprised me – who knew so many freshmen liked pho??

Anyways, Adam and I ordered pho while Kathy (who used to work at Just Pho and therefore is a pho pro) ordered the Vietnamese Sub. While I LOVED the pho, I feel like I need to admit that I actually liked the sub better. The bread was crunchy, the BBQ pork was tender and flavorful, the mayo sauce was creamy and the vegetables were crisp. When I go to Just Pho again, I’m definitely ordering the sub.

The pho, on the other hand, was a HUGE bowl filled to the brim with broth and chock full of long rice noodles, tender eye round and slice Vietnamese meatballs, thinly sliced onions and scallions, along with my additions of mung bean sprouts, cilantro and jalepenos. I also added some siriachi sauce for a spicy kick.

Um, and this bowl of delicious soup was so big that I couldn’t finish it.

I am disappointed in myself.

In restaurants I am the PRESIDENT of the clean plate club – I have to get my money’s worth! Thankfully, Adam and Kathy helped me finish off the bowl, while Adam and I helped Kathy finish her spring rolls and sub. Adam was definitely the food champion of the night. So impressive. He even ate the peanut sauce that came with the spring rolls (which was so awesome, by the way – I could take a bath in that sauce, seriously). He just stuck is finger right in and totally cleaned the bowl! And while I’m on the subject of the spring rolls – as Tina would say, HOLY YUM!

The only spring rolls I ever ate prior to Just Pho were tiny and deep fried with gunk for filling. Don’t get me wrong, those spring rolls are divine along side greasy Panda (a fast food delicacy, in my opinion), but I’ve decided that nothing beats a REAL spring roll. For me, it was all about the texture – the roll itself didn’t have a ton of flavor. The rice paper was chewy, the bean sprouts were crunchy and the shrimp and pork were tender. And although the roll itself is kind of bland, the sauce MAKES the roll – it’s a perfect combination. The spring roll is a vehicle for the peanut sauce (which, according to Kathy, is simply peanut butter and hoisin sauce mixed, followed by a tiny bit of water, then mixed again). Spring rolls are also quite possibly one of the prettiest appetizers out there, what, with the vibrant colors from the pink shrimp and green lettuce. Sigh, I was in foodie heaven – so many new eating experiences in one meal!

And now moving to something completely unrelated to food – SCHOOL! Nothing much there, just learning (very slowly learning, I might add) HTML, CSS and Dreamweaver.

They’re blowing my mind, people. I get the individual codes, but when I try to go about combining it all together, my mind combusts. It’s like that episode of Spongebob where Patrick’s thought bubble is a glass of spilled milk.

My mind on CSS = a glass of spilled milk. My mind on food = top form.

Which is why I made S’mores Brownies today after seeing Kait make some a few weeks ago. I decided to go the easy route, though, and use box brownie mix and simply poke in shards of graham cracker and fat marshmallows.

Well, they didn’t turn out to be the prettiest brownies ever, but I can’t call them a blunder because they were still delicious.

The marshmallows did turn caramel-y in the edge brownies which made them really chewy/stick to your teeth, but overall the brownies were awesome. Unfortunately I didn’t wait long enough for them to cool either (brownies are my ALL TIME favorite dessert, people. I have NO restraint/patience when it comes to brownies), so they looked even uglier after I tried cutting them.

Whatever. Brownies rule. Always.

So I gave the ugly ones to my roommates and I’m taking the more attractive middle pieces to work tomorrow. Next time I make these I think I’ll make the brownie part from scratch using the recipe on Joy the Baker’s site. Before that, however, I’m going to make the Caramel Sea Salt Brownies on Everyday Musings.

Drool x 100000000000000000.

Okay kids, I need to go learn about some pre-conception nutrition now. Girls, get your folate and iron! Boys, get your zinc!

That is all.

Oh, school. You keep me from blogging. And you keep me exhausted. Luckily, part of my Writing for the Web grade is regularly updating a personal blog, so now I have extra incentive to update more than once a week.

Here’s a quick recap of the week:

- Body Pump > Body Attack. Too bad Free Week is over. Oh well, my buns and thighs probably need a break from squatting and lunging to Bon Jovi and Black Eyed Peas.

- Roomie dinners are in full swing, except that we’re all on different schedules so it’s hard for us to eat together. On Tuesday, Alexi made an awesome black bean enchilada bake. Wednesday was turkey burgers, sweet potato fries and salad by Kayla and Shelley made Moroccan tilapia and veggies on Thursday. YUUUUM!

- Food Principles is BALLIN! Holy crap, I can’t wait to cook every week in lab, then stuff my face with all of the dishes my classmates and I make. Next week is Fruits and Veggies I. While others make trite things like fried apple pie, rhubarb crumble, and key lime sorbet, I will be making more challenging dishes like…microwaved vs. pressure cooked carrots. Perhaps I’ll get something more exciting next week.

- Writing for the Web sounds like it’s going to be a really applicable class, but I’m kind of nervous about the writing assignments already. I’m going for a minor in English, but I hate writing (except for blogging). I just like to read books and discuss!

- I received my first batch of free samples to review, courtesy of Gnu Bars!

Coming home to a box of free food is totally awesome, FYI. They sent me two of each flavor: Banana Walnut, Chocolate Brownie, Cinnamon Raisin, Espresso Chip, Lemon Ginger, Orange Cranberry and Peanut Butter. I shared some bars with Alexi, Shelley, Kayla and Adam just to get some extra opinions. The nutritional stats for these bars are awesome – all natural, 130/140 calories for a really good sized bar, TONS of fiber (50% of your daily intake!), and low sugar. I tried a bite of Alexi’s Chocolate Brownie and I was REALLY pleased – no weird cocoa powder taste like Clif bars. The bars are kind of dry compared to others I’ve had, but not in a nasty way and they have the perfect amount of chew. My first Gnu bar was the Banana Walnut flavor and although I liked the texture, I couldn’t really get into the flavor. I’ve never been a fan of banana flavored foods – only real bananas for me (and homemade banana bread/muffins).

And now for some random Saturday pictures:

OIAJ for breakfast!!!! Alexi gave me her almost empty peanut butter jar – I told her to try OIAJ for herself, but in the end she decided she couldn’t handle the deliciousness that is OIAJ. Topped with some homemade PB granola.

My mom came to Athens today to help me move in a mini fridge (a full fridge is too small for four people, apparently), as well as pick out a new printer, among other things. We ate lunch at Five Points Deli, which turned out to be really awesome! There are tons of different sandwich choices, along with homemade goods like chicken pot pie and butternut squash soup. I decided on Lemon Curry Chicken Salad on some delicious, chewy wheat bread. The chicken salad had a nice curry kick that was balanced out by the lemon. My favorite part = huge chunks of walnut. Yum.

I don’t know about you guys, but I LOVE Hobby Lobby. They have really cute seasonal decorations at great prices. Mom and I perused the Christmas section, which literally made me tear up a bit. I love Christmas. It literally warms my heart thinking about it.

These beauties are my non slip shoes for my Food Principles lab. Word has it that they’ll protect my abnormally large feet from falling knives and scalding grits.

And here is my (blurry) lab coat with the lovely UGA arches. Have to represent my school while microwaving those carrots!

Tomorrow is another busy day – I’m traveling to Kathy’s hometown with Adam and Chris to try Korean BBQ or Pho. FINALLY! Smell ya later!

Let’s get real here. Pizza is glorious. It’s perfect for breakfast, lunch and/or dinner. Pizza = endless possibilities. I could probably eat different kinds of pizza for the rest of my life and be content. Well, not really, but you get what I mean.

Do you know what else is divine and almost as versatile as pizza? Tacos. Breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner, people. Seriously.

So what do you think happens when you combine pizza AND tacos? TACO PIZZA, aka the best back to school dinner EVER. Crunchy, seasoned crust, chicken with tons of seasoning, crunchy bell peppers and topped with creamy sour cream – what’s not to love?! I also made a Mexican spinach salad to go along with the pizza. It was super easy and the dressing was really unique (to me) and delicious! It was a hit with all of my roommates, too, but really, who wouldn’t love taco pizza? The secret to making this pizza top notch is to season the crust and pre-bake it before adding the chicken, salsa, cheese, etc. I found the recipe in this month’s Food Network Magazine. It kills me when I find ingenious recipes like this – taco pizza seems so obvious!

Whatever. I’ve been developing a delicious breakfast pizza in my mind since last night. I don’t know about ya’ll, but whenever I can’t fall asleep I always start thinking of what I want for breakfast the next morning and I’m usually out within the next five minutes. Is that weird?

Okay, anyways, here is the recipe for Taco Pizza!

Taco Pizza, courtesy of Aaron McCargo, Jr.
Serves 8

Taco Seasoning

- 2 Tbsp onion powder (I only used 1)
- 2 Tbsp garlic powder
- 1 Tbsp chili powder
- 1 Tsp dried oregano
- 1 Tsp cayenne pepper (I only used 1/2 tsp)
- 1 Tsp Cumin (Mine was a heaping tsp – I LOVE cumin!)
- Salt and pepper

For Pizza

- 1 tube of thin crust pizza dough
- 1/4 cup olive oil (I only used 3 Tbsp)
- 1 lb chicken (I only used one breast)
- Flour, for dustinig
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 1 cup shredded cheddar (I only used about 1/2-2/3 cup of Mexican style shredded cheese)
- 1 avocado (optional – DO IT!)
- 1/4 onion, diced
- 1/3 bell pepper, diced
- 2/3 – 3/4 cup salsa (I eye balled it…you don’t want to overload the pizza)
- Sour cream, for serving
- Cilantro, for serving

This recipe (for me at least) requires a lot of multi-tasking. First, preheat the oven to whatever temperature the pizza crust directions give – for me, it was 400 degrees. Next, chop your onion and bell pepper. Then mix together your taco seasoning. Start heating oil in a saute pan. While that’s heating up, dice the chicken breast, dump the chicken in a bowl with a tablespoon of water and a tablespoon of oil and half of the taco seasoning. Mix well to coat the chicken. Let that marinate for about ten minutes. In the meantime, sprinkle some flour onto a baking sheet and roll out your pizza dough. Spread 2 tablespoons of olive oil on the pizza and sprinkle the rest of the seasoning on the pizza in an even layer. Seasoning the crust is CRUCIAL. DON’T FORGET IT!
Pop it in the oven to pre-bake for about five minutes.

Next, dump your spice covered chicken into the pan and let it sizzle for awhile without stirring to create a DELICIOUS spice crust. Seriously, don’t touch it for like, four minutes. It’s worth it. After four or five minutes, flip the chicken pieces over and let them sizzle for another three-ish minutes until cooked through.

After your crust is done pre-baking, take the sheet out of the oven and spread on the salsa. By this time my chicken was done cooking, so I added that on next. Then came the onion and bell pepper and finally the cheese. Pop the pizza back in the oven for another 8-10 minutes.

While the pizza is baking, chop up an avocado. Also, you can make a delightful Mexican Spinach Salad!

I made a few alterations:

- 4 good sized handfuls of spinach. I had a mega bag, but I didn’t use all of it.
- 1/2 can black beans
- 1/2 can corn kernels
- 1 roma tomato, chopped
- 1/4 onion, diced
- 1/3 bell pepper, diced

For the dressing:

- 1/4 cup olive oil (I probably used less…I just eye balled it)
- 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegarr
- 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- Salt and Pepper
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder

Mix the dressing components together. Mix the salad components together. Pour dressing over salad and toss. Easy and delicious. The apple cider vinegar gave the dressing a really unique taste, especially combined with the cumin and chili powder.

So, after making the salad, the pizza should be done. Cut the pizza in half long wise, then cut each half into four pieces to make eight (YAY MATH!). Serve with avocado slices and huge dollops of sour cream.

I don’t have a good picture of the salad, so you’ll have to use your imagination.

School went well, although I was half an hour late to work because of bus overloads. Needless to say, I was pretty frazzled (and sweaty) this morning, but my friends at work put me in a great mood, especially Chris who so generously picked me up after I was unable to get on TWO different buses. Today’s classes were Web Design and Nutrition for the Lifespan. Both seem interesting, but pretty easy. My test load is actually a lot lighter this semester, so hopefully that will take off some of the stress I put on myself. Tomorrow I have Food Principles, Writing for the Web, and Intro to Nutrition Studies. I just found out that for my Food Principles lab I have to buy a lab coat, non-slip shoes, and a name tag. And I have to wear my hair in a net.

Awesome.