There’s a great many things to do and places to see in this world of ours.  As humans, our lives are pretty short (and if you party like I do, it’s probably going to be even shorter).  So we have to prioritize!  We have brains for a reason and that reason is…reasoning (well, at least some of us use them for that purpose: see comment about partying above).  Let me be your voice of reason as I show you all the things you should be doing right here, right now.

It’s hard to be sure of what to eat these days.  Health reports come out with a study against a certain food one day and for it the next.  Do I eat the egg yolk or do I stick with the whites?  Are pomegranates that good for me?  How many more vitamins do I really need to take?  It’s confusing.  And I don’t like being confused about food.  I just like eating it.

Everyone’s heard the old adage, “Everything in moderation.”  Sounds pretty obvious, right?  You can eat your egg yolk (as long as you don’t eat five eggs a day) and not feel guilty.  Even dessert isn’t off limits if you don’t gorge yourself.  So this is why I’m going to give a shout out to something that has gotten a lot of bad press lately: meat.  It seem everyone is jumping on the vegetarian wagon, what with all the new vegetarian options out there.  Hey, I don’t have anything against tofu (I actually love tofu, but that’s a different story), but I have to defend my meat.  It’s delicious, packed with nutrition, and can be used in a million different ways.  Here’s why you should eat more meat: Read More »

Ever see something you want but don’t have the money to buy? Ever get sick of studying/watching TV and have the urge to get crafty and make things on your own? We know! Us too! We just don’t know where to start, which is why we got some of CollegeCandy’s craftiest writers to share their favorite DIY projects with everyone. This week we’re doin’ things a little differently. This project isn’t so much a want as a total need. Well, if you want to fit in at your neighborhood Chinese eatery..]

As an Asian, I’m unable to fully understand how many Americans can’t use chopsticks. Especially my friends. I thought I’d rubbed off on them enough to take them to a local Chinese fast-food place this past weekend. Guess not.

“How can people use two little wooden sticks to eat food?!” <Looks at the food. Looks at the chopsticks. Wipes hands then digs in. With hands.>

“Is this why Chinese people are so skinny?” <Does several frantic scooping motions with the chopsticks, ultimately picking up one grain of rice.>

“I’m too hungry for this! I give up.” <Throws one chopstick on the table and proceeds to stab the chicken and veggies with the other. Makes chicken kebab.>

(All of this while the group of Asians a table over looks at us in distaste. And silently condemns me for not teaching them the sacred Chinese tradition.)

Well, this doesn’t have to be you! After you make these awesome rubber-band chopsticks, you’ll never face disgrace at Panda Express again. Read More »

If not eating meat will make us as hot as any of the women in this PETA ad (that was banned from the Super Bowl), we’ll empty our fridge of all animal products right now.

On second thought, our fridge only has beer and peanut butter in it, so we’re good to go. Bring on the tofu!

We warned you, and now it’s here: the first episode of CollegeCandy TV. We wanted to come out with a bang (pun intended), so we got down and dirty. So, listen up; it’s time to talk about farts.

Hit up any Chinese or Indian buffet and you’ll notice that a fixture of the line is fried rice — the kind that you can pile on your plate time after time and still enjoy with each new helping. It’s both delicious and addictive.

So wouldn’t it be great if you could make that rice in your own kitchen and avoid shelling out $8 for an all-you-can-eat meal of regret?

Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Here’s the good news: you can, and it’s easy. In fact, if you ever have stray vegetables or leftovers lying around (like I do almost… oh, let’s see, EVERY DAY), it’s even easier. Fried rice is incredibly forgiving—you can toss whatever you want in there, and it will still taste great.

So here’s a basic recipe, but feel free to play around with it! Read More »

Hello all, welcome to day 4 of my week-long vegan eating extravaganza.

I can honestly say that I’m getting used to eating vegan, although I did wake up in a cold panic last night thinking I’d accidentally had nonfat milk instead of soy milk in my morning coffee yesterday, so maybe I take that back…

Breakfast: Breakfast is definitely the hardest meal for a vegan. I think cereal with soy milk is an acquired taste (or maybe just always gross), and as I found out yesterday, scrambled tofu is just plain nasty. I looked up some vegan recipes online, but everything requires baking. You can make versions of muffins, waffles, pancakes, etc, but who has time for this when running out of the house in the morning? Today, I have oatmeal and a Starbucks soy latte for breakfast… again.

Lunch: Nothing. Nothing. Read More »

I think I did a dance around the kitchen when I finally figured out how to replicate this Chinese dish so that it actually tasted authentic. SCORE! It’s a tad on the salty and oily side, but it’s sooooo good.

Ingredients for two portions: 1 tablespoon of vegetable or canola oil, about ¼ lb ground beef or ground pork, dried chili pepper flakes to taste (or red chili paste), 1 tablespoon of black bean garlic sauce, 1 teaspoon of soy sauce, one fresh package of extra-firm tofu, a little bit of broccoli (optional), and 4-5 green onions (scallions).

In a medium-sized pan, heat the oil and cook the ground meat over low-medium heat. Mix it with the chili pepper flakes or paste, the black bean garlic sauce, and the soy sauce. Read More »

Days as a Freshman: 17

Current Mood: Tired

“So she just said she was a lesbian? Right there?” Crystal sliced a piece of tofu up and shoved it into her mouth. “Stacey must have flipped her shit.”

“I’ve never seen her that silent for that long.” I tried to keep my eyes off the white, shimmying blobs on Crystal’s plate and took a bite of my own dinner. Crystal was fantastic, but her vegan diet was often cringe-worthy.

One of the first friends I had made at school besides my roommates, Crystal and I met in Statistics when she leaned over and asked if I had a calculator. I told her no, and that I hadn’t understood a damn thing the teacher had said for the last hour.

She vigorously agreed, asked me if I wanted a piece of gum, and a friendship was born. Read More »