Collegiate Cook | Shortcuts for Starving Students

How to Pull an All-Nighter

Filed under BLOG by admin on January 18, 2012 at 9:28 am {no comments}

Cue “Eye of the Tiger” and start feeling pumped: It’s 7 p.m. and you have a 20-page term paper ahead of you. Or a group project that’s due the next morning. Or a DIY gift that you totally meant to build weeks in advance.

Whatever your reason, welcome to the Land of the Unsleeping. I’ll be honest: it’s a far less exciting place to visit when you’re not partying the night away, but sometimes, it has to be done. Here are simple tried-and-true techniques so you can pull an all-nighter — and not look like a withered zombie that’s been hit by a minivan the next morning.

Step 1: Create Your Workspace

Turn on all the lights in your room. Keep things bright so you’re less likely to just. Rest your head. For one. Second. And then. CRASH! Waking up all doe-eyed just in time for class isn’t a relief when only the first sentence of a 1,500-word paper has been written.
Remove the distractions. Various companies offer Facebook blockers and other ways to cut you off from your favorite sites for a set amount of time. While you’re at it, put the cell phone on airplane mode — or turn it off completely. Don’t log into your e-mail, either. They’ll just delay your project further.
Blast the fan & open the windows. It’s easy to feel cocooned in a warm room and drift to sleep with your head nestled somewhere between your keyboard and textbook. Resist! A cool blast of air helps you feel alert.

Step 2: Get Your Eat On

Keep the ice water flowing. Sure, you may be making more frequent trips to the bathroom, but the cold water will keep you awake without causing you to binge — and subsequently crash — on caffeine. (Plus, walking to the bathroom can help keep you alert.)
Plan small meals or portioned snacks. Instead of staring at an empty bag of chips, portion out your snacks in a couple plastic baggies so you’re not as likely to binge. It’s easy to mindlessly eat while working, so set aside two or three 100- to 150-calorie snacks to eat throughout the night.
Opt for energy-boosting foods: Baby carrots, almonds, bananas with peanut butter, an apple, berries and broccoli florets are known for preventing fatigue, according to Blogher. Foods with a low-glycemic index, such as chickpeas, grapes, nuts, watermelon and aforementioned apples and carrots, are also great for keeping your energy levels strong and steady throughout the night.
Keep the caffeine to a minimum. Use it as a last resort, and only fill your smallest mug with coffee (or Five-Hour Energy, green tea, or whatever beverage you prefer). Quickly drinking a lot of caffeine can cause it to peak in your bloodstream, Prevention reports. Smaller doses throughout the night will prevent you from energy spikes — and stalls.

Step 3: Get Out of Your Seat!

Take a shower. If your eyes are starting to blur and flutter shut, and you just can’t stop your head from bobbing, go take a cold shower. It’ll buy you another hour at least. Just make sure the water is unpleasantly cold (sorry!).
Just dance! You may look ridiculous, but do something to get yourself moving. Maybe that means doing a set of jumping jacks or spending five minutes dancing your face off to the latest Rebecca Black jam (you know you love her), but commit to taking a short break to revive yourself. You’ll be glad you did.

Finally, here’s some interesting info to help you visualize the affect all-nighters can have on you (courtesy of OnlineColleges.net):

Via: Online Colleges Guide

Gooey Chocolate Pecan Squares Recipe

Filed under Desserts, Party foods by admin on January 12, 2012 at 2:15 pm {no comments}

The decision to devote an entire week’s worth of posts to baked goods was easy. Choosing the top five was more than a little challenging. By day, I work as an editor at Veranda, and each week we feature a series on Facebook. This week is my week. I culled through the magazine’s 25-year history to uncover, test, and — best of all — taste its recipes. Out of all of those recipes, I knew one category that had to make the final cut: pecan pie.

Anytime I see any pecan-infused dessert, I immediately think of my brother. He’d probably live off of it if he could, so when it came time to test this recipe, I knew I had to save it for my next trip to Florida so he could taste it. His verdict? The caramelized, nutty flavor and gooey texture provide everything you’d want from a pecan pie, and they’re decadent enough that you only need a small square to satisfy even the strongest cravings.

Chocolate Pecan Bites

(As seen in Veranda‘s March/April 2000 issue)

Serves 12

Ingredients:

1 refrigerated piecrust

1 cup pecan pieces, broken

3 eggs

½ cup butter, melted

1 ½ cups light brown sugar

1 cup dark Karo syrup

2 tablespoons Bourbon

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Bring piecrust to room temperature and press into 8” x 8” pan. Sprinkle pecan pieces over crust.

Mix eggs, butter, sugar, syrup, bourbon, and vanilla together by hand until fairly smooth. Pour over pecans. Top with chocolate chips, if desired.

Bake 45 minutes or until center has set. Let cool, then cut into squares.

Thanksgiving Recipes Anyone Can Cook

Filed under Dinner, Kitchen, Party foods by admin on November 18, 2011 at 8:27 pm {no comments}

Oh geez. Have you seen that thing? That cavernous bird, with its plastic baggie o’ giblets stuffed inside and its pasty skin and those bones? All those little, tiny, too-many-to-count bones?

What do you even do with it all? Where do you even begin?

Whew. Calm down. Deep, even breaths. You’ve got this. Sure, you somehow volunteered to help make the holiday feast and you’re not quite — okay, maybe not even a little bit — sure how to prepare it, but I’ll let you in on a little secret: It’s really not so difficult. Especially if you follow one of these stress-free Thanksgiving recipes that anyone can cook. They’re simple dishes with a flavorful impact. Now your only challenge is choosing what to make.