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Display Name: mbalavage
Member Since: 5/18/09
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Gas stove, good water pressure, and NO ONE living above me. I can (and have) deal(t) with everything else.


I Would Never Rent an Apartment That…
Reader Survey

8/8/11 6:18 PM

@fulinlin: Eating fat doesn't make you fat.
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/fats/


The 10 Foods That Most Affect Weight Gain & Loss
The Atlantic

6/27/11 5:14 PM

Highly recommended appliance alert: immersion blenders make this almost too easy to make. I love avocados pureed with a scant tbsp of dutch process cocoa. It makes chocolate pudding for breakfast totally okay!


Avocado Breakfast Pudding from Lizzie of Tomboy Style
Breakfast with a Blogger

5/24/11 4:53 PM

O electric kettle, I do love you so. You give and you give, multiple times a day, quickly and generously, and save for a bimonthly shot of vinegar, you ask nothing in return.


Electric Kettles: Should You Buy One?
5/12/11 6:47 PM

@empress, I've bought frozen lava cakes before and reheated them no problem. I bet you could make the whole box, eat one, and freeze 5 (flash freeze them on a baking sheet and then toss 'em in a ziplock), and reheat them in the oven at a slightly lower temp when the next craving hits. At this point, what do you have to lose?


Do You Make Dessert Ahead of Time? 5 Recipes to Make and Freeze Now
4/25/11 4:46 PM

The banana boats my mum and I used to make growing up: roasted bananas, melted chocolate chips, and broiled marshmallows, to be eaten straight off the foil-wrapped cookie sheet the very second it was just cool enough to not burn our mouths. For pure deliciousness and nostalgia, nothing compares ... not even the time-stopping chocolate chevre donuts I had the other night.


What's the Best Dessert You Ever Ate?
4/25/11 3:27 PM

I made these chocolate stuffed brioche rolls for a brunch and was so tickled with how perfectly round (not to mention utterly delicious) they turned out!

http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/guest-post/-guest-post-from--085769


Wait, You Made That?! Name Your Proudest Culinary DIY
3/28/11 5:24 PM

I also have one ice tea spoon that mysteriously appeared! I much prefer it for ice cream.


5 Ways to Put a Long-Handled Iced Tea Spoon to Good Use
3/25/11 4:17 PM

I love the view from my bedroom. The first thing I see in the morning is my neighbor's giant tree. It instantly orients me; bare but hopeful in the winter; flush with twittering birds in the spring; green and lush in the summer; gorgeous with autumn colors in the fall.


What Do You Love About Your Bedroom?
3/24/11 6:03 PM

@ellenx: I, too, JUST discovered how sweet steeped cinnamon is! I made a cuppa with ~1/2 tbsp each of vietnamese cinnamon, ginger, and whole cloves, and it was so deliciously sweet that for a moment I thought I had absentmindedly added honey.


Product Review: Aveda Comforting Tea
3/22/11 4:31 PM

I'd never had turnips before they appeared in my CSA box, but I discovered that I LOVE them in shalgam masala. I tweak this recipe depending on how I'm feeling and add in red lentils and collard greens if they've also come courtesy of the CSA:

http://www.nandyala.org/mahanandi/archives/2005/09/02/masala-turnips/


Pickled Turnips 3 Ways
Recipe Review

3/18/11 7:36 PM

There are definite differences between coconut oil and coconut butter. The butter has some of the meat in it and does not have the same melty effect as coconut oil - sort of like peanut oil versus peanut butter.

I've been experimenting with coconut oil for years now. I like to keep a bit in a butter warmer on the stove so that I always have some in its liquid form (any non-plastic container will work). I am not a fan of coconut flavor, but for some reason, love the very slight flavor that coconut oil gives off when roasting and sauteing vegetables.

Baking recipes require a bit of experimentation; I'd recommend trying vegan recipes that use coconut oil and seeing how the baked goods turn out rather than substituting coconut oil 1:1 for oil or butter in your standard recipes.

It seems expensive at the outset, but it lasts a LONG time, and I've never had any go rancid. Vitacost.com is a great place to buy it for a bit cheaper than the health food store - I like the Nutiva Certified Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil.


A Healthier, More Flavorful Fat? Consider Coconut Oil
3/15/11 4:30 PM

Microplane, all the way. I prefer the fine grater - it's easier to clean, and the shorter, wider length works for me. The longer zester tends to get whatever I'm grating all over the counter, even if I concentrate the zesting in one area of the zester.

(The word zest has lost all meaning after typing it so many times.)


Zest Of Life: 5 Classic Citrus Zesters
3/8/11 7:41 PM

I manage food restriction in two ways: first, by imagining how my body will digest and feel after eating whatever it is I'm about to eat - that makes it way easier to order a salad over a hamburger; and second, by sticking to a routine.

I can't do cleanses that last multiple days. It's partially a willpower issue, but I also notice that I give myself too much permission to go crazy with the bad stuff in anticipation of the cleanse, which just makes it harder to complete.

That said, I eat quite healthfully 80% of the time (ignore those gummy bears in my desk drawer at work), and I find that eating raw one day a week makes a huge difference in how I manage my cravings the rest of the week. I always have more energy and just *feel* better on raw day, and crave and eat fresh, healthy foods the rest of the week 80% of the time as a result.

I can't do raw all the time - too much prep! Too little bacon! - but one day a week is enough to keep me feeling light, bright, and happy, even when I splurge on decadent foods on other days.

I also like to spend the first day of each month following the first day of this juice detox:
http://life.gaiam.com/article/1-2-3-detox-radiance
It's basically all juice and hot lemon water for a day. It's delicious and satisfying and helps reset my sugar cravings after that time of the month.


Can Food Lovers Really Survive a Cleanse?
3/8/11 2:55 PM

For those who want the sweetness of commercial PB, why not just add a drizzle of honey to natural PB when using it?


Peanut Butter: Is Texture More Important Than Taste?
Cook's Illustrated

3/3/11 7:24 PM

Pot cheese has a consistency between cottage cheese and .... cottage cheese?


What Can I Do With Pot Cheese?
Good Questions

3/3/11 7:17 PM

...and if your recipe doesn't call for oil, just rub a teensy bit of oil in the cup or on the spoon before pouring in or scooping out the honey.


Baking Tip: Measure Oil First, Honey Second
3/3/11 7:03 PM

I attempted this with whole wheat pastry flour and coconut oil instead of canola oil, which resulted in rock hard cookies--oops! Fortunately, I saved half the dough and just plopped about a 1/4 cup of dough into my mini cast iron skillet with a few tablespoons of almond milk and a handful of frozen raspberries. I threw it in the oven at 350, jumped in the shower to wash off the yoga sweat and 15 minutes later had a the most comforting porridge-y breakfast - perfect for this rainy December day! (Let's just pretend that I'm not technically eating cookie dough for breakfast.)


Cookie Recipe: Life-Changing Vegan Thumbprints
12/18/10 4:17 PM

Heh, ice cubes* Ice cubs would do much worse to a glass of whiskey.


Stocking Stuffers for Him
Roundup

12/14/10 2:30 PM

SherryBinNH: whiskey stones are frozen like ice cubs, but they lower the temp of whiskey without watering it down and thus affecting the flavor, as ice would.


Stocking Stuffers for Him
Roundup

12/14/10 2:29 PM