The Tale of the 7-shot Latte (and a recipe for a Green Tea Latte)

This is a story all about how my life got flipped turned upside down.

...

Okay, maybe not my life, but definitely my day.

It was the morning of my 23rd birthday, and I remembered that I had a Starbucks birthday freebie to redeem. For those of you who have never redeemed a birthday freebie at Starbucks before, you can get any drink you want, in any size with any additional add ones, like syrups and soy milk- for free! Of course, this can get pretty crazy, with people ordering some crazy drinks like this one.

While my birthday freebie wasn't that extravagant, I may have forgotten that lattes already come with a pre-determined number of espresso shots. I ordered a venti soy Pumpkin Spice latte....with 4 extra espresso
shots.

A nice photo....before the caffeine rush

You may be thinking to yourself 'What the HECK?! Who needs that much espresso in one morning coffee?'

I had a good reason, I promise!! Not only was I suffering from lack of sleep (I had gotten maybe two hours the night before, and four hours the night before that), I was also up early to teach (at the time I was teaching one of the highest energy groups there is-a kindergarten class) AND I wasn't going to be home until late that evening. Clearly that latte was needed.

I stretched out that latte from the first bell of the day to the last bell, and it was one of the most energetic days of my life! The kids definitely thought 'Miss M' was a bit crazier than normal.

However a week after the crazy latte, and many coffees after, I started to need more and more just to get me through the day. In an effort to both spend less money and make use of my giant tea collection, I started alternating days I had coffee with homemade tea lattes.

I started making my own green tea lattes, which aren't as hard as I thought. My first few attempts were downright disastrous, and it took a few tries, but I finally made one I liked and I didn't have to go out and buy any fancy equipment!

My version is definitely a lot less sweeter than any kind you would buy in stores, and doesn't look as fancy without whipped cream or frothy milk (ahem, Starbucks, I'm lookin' at you!), but I find that it brings out the taste of the green tea powder a lot better, and is a LOT better for your waistline!

Green Tea Latte (makes one large mugful)

Ingredients 

1/4 cup hot water
1tsp matcha (green tea powder- I really love using David's Tea Matcha but I find the varieties found in Asian supermarkets to do just fine for everyday)
1/2 tsp cinnamon, plus more for garnish
3/4 cup 2% milk, heated (you can substitute for skim milk, or a non-dairy milk like soy or coconut. I find almond milk doesn't work as well or green tea lattes)
sweetener, to taste
whipped cream, optional

• In your mug, whisk together the hot water, the matcha and the cinnamon until it is fully blended into the water and there are no clumps to be seen. (I have a mini whisk that does the job well but there are actual bamboo whisks made for this purpose)
• While continuously whisking, slowly pour in your milk
• Whisk in your sweetener
• Top with whipped cream and additional cinnamon for garnish

Enjoy!

Choconut-Cinnabon Bread Pudding

Two posts in a day! This is called trying to catch up, which I am not adept at doing.

A few weeks ago, I went out for my birthday with a few friends. I split a dish of chocolate bread pudding with a friend...and it was the most delicious bread pudding I have ever had.

Birthday girl with birthday bread pudding!

Until I had another craving and decided to make my own.

I made this under the guise of sharing with friends, but I still had half a dish leftover for myself!

I searched for easy recipes, because I had never made bread pudding by myself, and came across this one from The Kitchn-Coconut Milk Bread Pudding

As an avid fan of coconut milk (I always have at least one can in the pantry at any given time), I thought this bread pudding sounded delicious....except for the fact that I didn't have candied ginger, pistachios or jaggery. However, I did have chocolate chips, chopped walnuts and brown sugar. I also had Cinnabon bread. The combination of them all sounded delicious to me!

I followed the cooking directed of the recipe, but used my own substitutions

Choconut-Cinnabon Bread Pudding (adapted from The Kitchn, serves 6-8)

Ingredients:
butter-flavoured cooking spray
6-7 slices Cinnabon Bread, toasted and torn into bite-size pieces
1/4-1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional, but oh so delicious!)
1/4 cup chocolate chips (to keep it dairy-free, use carob chips instead of chocolate chips)
1 (13.5-ounce) can coconut milk
3 large eggs
3/4 brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

• Preheat oven to 325°.
• Spray a 9x7 or 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray. Arrange the bread pieces in the dish and evenly sprinkle the walnuts and chopcolate chips on top.
• In another bowl, whisk together the coconut milk, eggs, sugar, cardamom, cinnamon, vanilla extract and salt.
• Pour the coconut milk mixture over the bread, pressing down with a spoon or fork to make sure all the bread gets soaked.
• Bake for 45 minutes or until set. The center should spring back when lightly touched.
• Let stand for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Super-easy Spicy/Sweet Sriracha Sauced Chicken

Before I begin, I apologize that there are no actual pictures of my food yet. I quite literally ate every last bit of chicken that I made (given that I only made enough for one, it happens more often than not).

This week was a busy, and emotional one for me. A combination of school, personal problems, and a crap knee meant that my focus was thrown WAY off. I wanted to end my week with something delicious (Yes, I realized it's Saturday, but I don't work Sundays, and consider that to be my beginning-of-week rest day)
I was browsing online looking for a good buffalo chicken recipe, and was going to use this one, but I realized that a) I had no Frank's Red Hot sauce AND no Tabasco sauce and b) I didn't want to eat deep-fried chicken, not after the junk I've been eating all week. What's a girl to do when she gets that buffalo chicken craving?!

You adapt. Luckily for me, I DID have my handy-dandy, half-full bottle of Sriracha hot sauce. 'What's that?' you say. Let me show you a comic that explains all.

This recipe is so good, and though it's absolutely NOTHING like actual buffalo chicken, it satiated my cravings...for now.

Super-Easy Spicy/Sweet Sriracha Sauced Chicken(adapted from seriouseats.com, serves 4)

Ingredients:
1 lb chicken pieces
1 tbsp butter (I used margarine, I imagine butter would be tastier)
1/4 cup Sriracha hot sauce
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (not necessary, but I love it)
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp barbeque sauce

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Melt the butter (or margarine) in a microwaveable-safe bowl. Combine everything but the chicken in the bowl. Increase/decrease ingredients to your personal tastes.
• Add the chicken pieces to the bowl. Make sure that very bit of the chicken is covered. Marinate in bowl for 15 min (or longer, no more than upto 2 hours though). 
• Empty contents of bowl into an oven-safe dish. Bake for 40-45 minutes. 

I ate my chicken with a side of grilled corn, and steamed veggies. It was absolutely delicious, the perfect end to a busy day of work!