Yes, it’s that stressful time of year again. The time when libraries are overflowing with nervous undergrads, sleep is questionable, and the coffee pot is kept hot 24/7. In my case though, my iced coffee is kept cold.

Yes, I drink my iced coffee in a $1 Walmart Cup with a $1 swirly straw.

And yes, I look like I haven’t slept in three days.. because I haven’t.

Aside from my five million iced coffees in the morning, today I made a spinach omelette stuffed with turkey bacon and ketchup. Don’t you just love ketchup on eggs? I think some people are weirded out by it, but at least it’s not barbecue sauce.

For mid-day snacking,  dried papaya could quite possibly be my number one weaknesses. Maybe it’s just the food blogger in me, but it seriously tastes better than candy!

In Publix a few days ago, I was mindlessly wandering around the produce aisle when I locked eyes with a giant fresh papaya. The adventurous foodie in me instantly decided what the heck, if I’m hooked on the dried version, then I’ll certainly love the real thing. I picked up the bad boy, checked out at the register, and hurried home to dive into the juicy fruit.

The first bite was not that exciting– in fact I was really dissapointed. I think I was expecting that papaya would taste like  a mango, but its aftertaste was just completely off. It looks like I’ll be sticking to the candy-like version instead.

My lunchtime routine this week has been pretty college-y. If you’ve been following my blog for a while now, you know I have a slight obsession with chicken nuggets. On the nugget scale, Chick-fil-a definitely ranks in at least the top three for having tasty nug nugs (dipped in honey mustard of course.)

When the late afternoon munchies hit, Greek yogurt always seems to be a great pick-me-up. Yoplait released their new Greek Yogurt line a few weeks ago and I decided to give it a whirl. Overall, I was really impressed! The consistency was thick and tasted basically like Oikos Greek Yogurt. To give it a fruity flavor, I squirt some Smucker’s strawberry jelly on top. Yum-o!

If you’d like to try this new brand of Greek yogurt, be sure to enter Christina’s Yoplait Giveaway.

For dinner, a hearty steak fajita stuffed with mushrooms, green peppers, and salsa never fails. Thank goodness I have leftovers for tomorrow night!

—

So the calendar says I have less than two weeks left until my college graduation and let me tell you, it is really starting to hit hard. How can four years possibly fly by this fast? It’s madness I tell you, and I’m not sure if I’m ready to face reality yet. I’ve been living in this bubble for four years where I’ve made lifelong friends, attended football games every Saturday in The Swamp, and worked part-time as an ice cream scooper at Ben & Jerry’s. I’ve honestly had the time of my life and I can’t imagine what life’s next chapter has in store for me.

What I’m feeling right now can be best described as: eeeeeek!

Have a wonderful week and good luck to those studying for final exams!

Dear Hungry Girl, what would we do without you?

Here are the 6 simple steps according to Hungry Girl:

1. Spray a mug with Pam Cooking Spray

2. Add a handful of spinach and microwave for 30 seconds

3. Blot excess liquid from spinach

4. Add 1 egg and give it a stir

5. Microwave for about a minute. Stir gently, and then microwave for another 30 – 45 seconds, until scramble is just set.

6. Add ketchup and any other toppings of your choice. Enjoy!

Other Versions:

Pizza! Pizza!Egg Mug

California Love Mug

It’s All Greek to Me Egg Mug

Chicken Fajita Scramble

Denver Omelette in a Mug

Veggie Eggs-plosion

My thoughts: Of course this 2 minute breakfast isn’t going to taste exactly like a Denny’s home style breakfast, but it sure is simple to make! If you’re running late for class or work, I’d definitely recommend this “egg in a mug” meal. On the other hand, if you do have 10- 15 minutes to whip yourself up a hearty breakfast, I would go for the stove top method. I can’t wait to experiment with more ingredients! Bacon, salsa, and avocado are definitely going to make a guest appearance in my next egg mug.

Have you ever tried the Hungry Girl Egg Mug Classic? What are you favorite versions of it?

** Be sure to checkout my latest College Lifestyle posts!

Cheap Spring Break Ideas for College Girls

How to Go Green for Spring Break

“Egg McMuffin”

Whole Wheat English Muffin Egg Sandwich with Canadian Bacon, Cheese, and Ketchup

“$1 Parfait”

Chobani All Natural Greek Yogurt with Total Cereal

“McCafe Iced Coffee”

Home brewed Iced Coffee with Eggnog Creamer

“French Fries”

Sweet Potatoes with Ketchup

And finally.. “The Real Deal”

McDonald’s Chicken Nuggets and Honey Mustard

Sorry, I had to.

What fast food meals do you reinvent in your kitchen?

]]> http://tropicaleats.com/2010/01/10/reinventing-mcdonalds-at-home/feed/ 25 tropicaleats DSC01945 DSC01953 DSC01730 DSC02031 DSC01652 http://tropicaleats.com/2009/10/06/marketing-for-a-foodie/ http://tropicaleats.com/2009/10/06/marketing-for-a-foodie/#comments Tue, 06 Oct 2009 17:12:08 +0000 Shannon [Tropical Eats] http://tropicaleats.com/?p=581 ]]> Happy October everyone.

I hope the Fall weather is crisp and cool wherever you are today! A very big congratulations to Kaitlyn, for winning my Tropical Eats Giveaway. As some of you may know, I work part-time as an ice cream scooper at the local Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop. This semester, I’m very fortunate to assist with marketing opportunities for the store. I’ll be managing our new GroovyDeals Twitter account, promoting daily specials, and finding unique ways increase the customer’s experience. I can’t wait to share these exciting Ben & Jerry’s adventures with you.

Scrambled eggs, black bean salsa, ham slices, and a Granny Smith Apple

Before I went to tutoring one day, I made a trip to the local Publix and bought a Starbucks Double Shot Energy + Coffee Drink and a fresh fruit & walnut salad. I probably could have won a food competition, I drank and ate these both so fast.

Reading and old Women’s Health Magazine. I’m a Country music kind of girl, and I knew I had to buy this magazine when I saw Taylor Swift on the cover. Rascal Flatts, Jason Aldean, and Keith Urban are a few of my other favorite artists.

Learning Consumer Theory while eating an Apple Ginger Honest Foods Bar.

Review: This is my new favorite bar! The flavor was so interesting and it didn’t taste extremely sugary like CLIFBARs. This Honest Foods Bar was definitely the perfect snack to cure my late night “study munchies.” The bar has 5g of Protein, which is somewhat  low, but the unique flavor completely outweighs the nutritional stats.

I encourage you all to look at the Honest Foods website. Their marketing approach may shock you, but it will certainly get you to remember their product.

McDonald’s Chicken Nuggets.. my favorite! I promise there was a lot of honey mustard dipping action going on when I had these. Everything seems to taste better with honey mustard.

Have a great week friends!

]]> http://tropicaleats.com/2009/10/06/marketing-for-a-foodie/feed/ 30 tropicaleats DSC00158 DSC00560 DSC00562 me DSC00480 DSC00481 DSC00566 http://tropicaleats.com/2009/09/07/i-love-college-football/ http://tropicaleats.com/2009/09/07/i-love-college-football/#comments Mon, 07 Sep 2009 00:37:00 +0000 Shannon [Tropical Eats] http://tropicaleats.wordpress.com/2009/09/07/i-love-college-football ]]> Happy Labor Day friends! I hope you’ve all had a very eventful weekend. Last night, I was lucky enough to watch the Florida Gators dominate the Charleston Southern Buccaneers in The Swamp. The final score was 62-3.

Absolutely nothing beats the excitement you feel in the stadium with the other Gator fans. Here’s a 45 second video I took of me and the pre-game show:

I love being a Florida Gator!

Now here are a few of the delicious meals I’ve enjoyed recently:

Breakfast omelette stuffed with fried ham slices. I also had a delicious granny smith and a side of sliced tomatoes sprinkled with basil and Parmesan cheese.

Ok I’ll admit it, I am a hazelnut iced coffee-holic. Recently, I went out of my comfort zone to try Yogi Tea: Berry Detox.

This particular Yogi Tea was very subtle in flavor. I did add a sprinkle of sugar to liven the tea up a bit. The package stated the Yogi Tea was supposed to cleanse my body, but I honestly couldn’t tell if it did or not. Maybe like the flavor, it had a subtle cleansing factor. So far my favorite Yogi tea is the Calming version.

**As a side note, I just learned that there is Yogi Cereal. Go on the Yogi website and customize your Yogi cereal based on: Mood, Flavor, Purpose. I chose Revitalized Mood and was paired with the Granola Crisps: Mountain Blueberry Flax. Hopefully I can find this in a local grocery store because it looks delicious!

BEFORE:
Stonyfield Farm Oikos Honey Organic Greek Yogurt with diced banana and PB & Co. Cinnamon Raisin Swirl

AFTER:
All mixed up!

For dinner I made my favorite thirty minute meal: Parmesan Crusted Chicken. Honey mustard was the perfect dipping sauce for these crusted chicken bites.

Enjoy your day off tomorrow! Mine will be spent studying and watching online lectures.

**Giveaways Alert: The Lunchbox Bunch and Health, Happiness, and Hope