Fresh Raspberry Yogurt with Chocolate

So ever just want to actually prep something nice and easy and make it look pretty or at least try to? well i have so I decided to try this project out.

Materials

• Bowl
• Fork
• Grater of some kind
• Spoon

Ingredients

• Fresh Raspberries
• 2 cups of Vanilla Yogurt
• 1 Chocolate Bar

Ingredients and an upside down candy bar 

 First grab a couple of raspberries and mash them with a fork

Mashing the raspberries

Mashed Raspberries looks like Jam

 Add the vanilla yogurt and mix it up so that it looks good. also try to make sure the mash isn't all at the bottom you want some of that good stuff at the top too

Adding the Vanilla Yogurt

Mix it all up!

 While the yogurt is chilling on the side, break off a piece of the chocolate and shave some of it with a grater into a bowl.

Garnish Time!

Chocolate Shavings!

 At the end of all this add some raspberries to the top either arranged or just thrown in there and sprinkle with the chocolate and ta-da you got a delicious dessert or breakfast item!

End Product looks amazing right?

Conclusion Out of 5: 5- Amazing!

Cost:  5: VERY CHEAP! It was just simple ingredients really. Its very very inexpensive to make.

Experience Cooking: 4, Easy and somewhat fun. Then again I'm sorta tired tonight so maybe it would be more fun if I was fully awake.


Time: 5, Simple and easy.

Apperance: 4, Not what I expected but it looks tasty and it was!

Taste: 5, Very good the taste of the raspberries were very bold giving it a great flavor. Its kinda energizing and makes me think this would be a great quick and easy breakfast.

Eggs and Scallions in a Hot Pot

So I decided to do an experiment on eggs. I want to see which cooks eggs better. A Hot Pot? Or a microwave. Today we will be doing Scrambled Eggs in a hot pot. Im adding Scallions cause I like the flavor and texture. And I will be using these eggs to go with some microwaved instant rice. (I recently bought actual rice but i've saving it for another project)

Materials

• Plate or Cutting Board
• Bowl
• Fork
• Hot Pot

Ingredients

• 2 Eggs
• Milk 
• Scallions
• 1 tablespoon Butter

1- Scramble the eggs in a bowl add a little bit of milk so about a tablespoon or so.

Before Scrambling

For me since I am doing scallions, I chop the scallions on the plate. After I am done I put them in the egg mixture.  And then add the butter to my hot pot. I turn it on and wait for it to melt. Then add the eggs. And cook like regular scrambled eggs.

Scallions

Scallions Chopped

Added to eggs

Butter melting

Now when I was cooking it I noticed that of course when the egg was in the plastic it was not getting cooked as fast. Now I realized this in the beginning. But little did I know how much contsant stirring I would be doing because i needed to make sure they didn't burn. All in all a little hetic but worth it.

While cooking

Result

Conclusion Out of 5: 3- average

Cost:  4: It all costed pretty cheap and most of these materials you buy in bulk so you have more than enough to cook other dishes with them.

Experience Cooking: 2, It needed alot of monitoring to make sure the butter or eggs didn't burn from sitting on the hot part for too long. And it took a bit to make sure they were completely cooked through.

Time: 3, Prep is a little busy but it was a pretty fast cooking experience. It didn't take longer than cooking a normal egg.

Apperance: 3, Very chopped up from the amount of stirring. Sorta Fluffy not really.

Taste: 5, Very good. Makes it worth going through all the trouble and almost taste as if I had made them in a pan at home.

Cooking Safety (aka Common Sense)

I guess I'll be making a series of non cooking posts while I am away from my dorm and before I can take pictures. So in my college according to the handbook we are allowed to cook things with microwave and a hot pot along with various other applicances that don't have open coils or deep fry things. Of course this hasn't stopped my friends from saying they would hunt me down if a fire alarm ever went off. In most dorms they do have communal kitchens where you are probably more versed in safety. But when it comes to dorm cooking you have to be cautious of new dangers and new risks. Whether it be handling a knife and raw food, or making sure the room doesn't get too warm and set off the sprinklers with the steam. (yes this has happened)

Here are some things I have employed to prevent fire hazards:

1. Always cook on a clean surface away from random paper or other material that could catch fire. If anything I usually cook with a towel underneath the hotpot to prevent it from moving on the sleek surface near my window.
2. Cook near the window or away from the fire alarm. In my old dorm at NCSU some of the sprinklers would be set off by something as simple as the showers steaming up too much. So often times I would crack a door or a window to allow ventilation in the room. In my new dorm there is a nice wide ledge near the window that I use to cook on. It is opposite of the fire alarm and allows me to crack the window for the ventilation I need.
3. NEVER LEAVE COOKING UNATTENDED- Self explanatory and a sorta duh moment, but its actually one of the number one things college students tend to overlook. And with Dorm cooking being the cause of 70% fire alerts in college. We want to be extra safe by not taking that chance. 
4. Unplug cooking appliances after use, some of them like my lovely hot pot wont turn off if you just put it on low. So best thing to do is to just unplug it after you are done cooking. Also follow all the instructions.
5. As much as we don't want to admit or think that things could possibly go wrong, we still have to be prepared. Have some water on hand and even baking soda to help combat dorm fires. 

So this brings me to my second category,  Food cleanlieness. This is a little more simplier alot more common sense.

1. Always clean up your area and dishes as soon as you can. Wash in warm water and soap
2. Don't eat anything that might seem spoiled. 
3. Wash your hands before and after prepping food and after you handle raw meat to avoid cross contamination. This means utensils and cutting boards, etc. before switching foods (meat to veggies or vv)
4. And from a wise friend of mine:  "Try not to cook in bare feet - hot spills or dropped pans/heavy objects can hurt like a mofo":)

So this concludes what i have to say about Dorm Cooking Safety. I may have forgotten some elements but if I have just remind me or comment below.

~Thanks!

The Beginning

Good Evening Everyone!

So for starter's I guess I'll introduce myself. My name is Ashley but on the net I am usually called Ali hence the blog title. I am a 20 year old, college student who loves to cook. I may not be extra experienced but I love trying out new things. Sometimes I fail horribly (I'll save those stories for later) and other times I suceed and get an awesome treat. Now, cooking in college can be troublesome. Often times college students settle on ramen and soup or instant meals because they don't have ways to otherwise cook things. And I do sometimes indulge in instant foods but other times I mix in things and make it slightly healthier. Or decide to try new experiments all together.

Recently I was looking the Internet for recipes to try and was disappointed in the lack of college dorm recipes that were allowed in my dorm. I've been in 2 universities in my 3 year college stint so far and neither of them allowed Hot Plates or Indoor Grills. Also converting recipes into smaller portions is a pain. So I've decided to try out this blog thing. If anyone wants to read it? Great! Have recipes you want me to try and make? Awesome! (Just to warn you, I am a picky eater >.> )

Anywhom here is to cooking the dorm way!