Magic Muffin Mix: Lo's version

The Magic Muffin Mix found here was put together by Taralynn at undressed skeleton, I did not make the original recipe, I just modified it to fit what I like. Taralynn's got a great fitness/healthy eating blog, check it out if you're into that, she's got tons of great recipes and tips on staying healthy.

One of the recipes I've tried of hers is the magic muffin mix, very simple and healthy too! The only thing I didn't like is I prefer not to use stevia, It's hard to find unless you want to open 200 coffee sized packets (thanks little sister for helping me do that!). Also, I simply don't like the taste of it. Instead I substituted honey and the muffins turned out great! Keeping with the flavours of fall, I made up a couple variations of my own.

So the base recipe is: 

1 cup whole wheat flour 

1 tsp baking soda 

1/2 cup applesauce (sweetened) 

3/4 cup honey

1 tbsp vanilla 

2 egg whites

Preheat Oven to 350 C
Mix Liquid Ingredients together
Slowly add dry Ingredients
Fill muffin liners 3/4 full
bake 15-20 minutes

Makes 8 muffins
... I usually double or triple it because, well, I love muffins. 

Banana Walnut
Add 1-2 bananas
1/4 cup chopped walnuts 

Pumpkin Spice 
2 heaping tbsp Pumpkin Puree
1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
I saved some of the seeds to put on top of the muffins. Also, use as much or as little spice as you like, this is just roughly what I used. 

Apple Oatmeal Cinnamon 

1 chopped apple
1/4 cup oatmeal 

2 tbsp applesauce
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Again, I kept some oatmeal aside to sprinkle on top as well as a few thin slices of apple to make it look nice. 

Fun Facts about muffins: Want to triple the recipe to try them all, but know you won't eat them all before mould does the job for you? FREEZE THEM! Perfect for packing a lunch in the morning, by snack time you're good to go.
Dollorama has super cute cupcake liners, check it out next time you're there. 

Pair one of these super healthy muffins with your favourite tea and you've got a light breakfast or midmorning snack that you won't have to feel guilty about. I've got some Tazo Passion Tea here, which is also amazing chilled with lemonade, but I'll tell you about that some other time! 

Monday morning pick me up: My favorite radio show

Oh Monday, I hate you, we all hate you. Got a case of the Mundays? Well, I've found a fix... for the morning anyway.

Now, before I go on, you have to promise not to judge me. I'm going to go out on a limb and share with you my all time favourite radio morning show. This shows is the only reason I even remotely look forward Mondays, because they only play during the week. If you live in the Windsor/Detroit area I hope you know what I'm about to say, if not I may just be about to change your mornings.
If you've got a radio nearby, turn it to 88.7 also known as the station 89x. During normal hours it's an alternative rock station, which I enjoy, but in the morning it's literally a RIOT. Now before you tune it, let me tell you this show is NOT safe for work and should not be listened to around virgin ears. ...You better not be judging me right now.

If you can't catch the station on the radio it's also available online http://www.89xradio.com/, just click the listen live link at the top. This station is basically all the things you wanted to know as a young teen, and lets you act like a kid again by encouraging callers to say the word that starts with a P pertaining to the male genitalia when they call in. The show consists of the hilarious trio of Dave, Chuck the Freak and Lisa (your poor, poor woman, you are a saint!). From special guests like Leon the Sex Coach, Walmart Security Guard, Andrew the Man Expert this show will make you laugh and give you some fun facts to share with your friends. Be prepared to be offended, to be grossed out, to be intrigued, and most of all to laugh till you cry. I've literally had to stop running before because I was laughing so hard... that funny.
Not feeling the show itself? Check out their twitter for regular updates about the stories they feature, or the shows blog has all the stories they feature put down in writing. If you can tune in! The dynamic of three mixed with the (sometimes crazy) callers is a hoot and will definitely give you a reason to smile on a Monday.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DaveandChuck
Blog: http://www.89xradio.com/Shows/Blog?author=5b9f5597-9983-402a-9f02-21832112e87f 

Study tips

Ever notice that Studying is Student and Dying put together? Ya, I'm sure we've all heard that one once or twice and I think most of us would have to agree with said statement. Being a drama student, studying isn't always a part of my academic life, but when it is boy does it throw me for a loop!
I figured I'd try to save some of you new students the trouble and here's a few tips I've found that help me study more effectively! Again, I'm no expert, just a fourth year university student so I think it's safe to say I've done my fair share of studying.

1. Make a Plan... and Stick to it
This tends to be one of the first things I do when I'm studying, usually just to procrastinate but in the end it helps me map out what needs to be done and allows me to see everything as a whole. Be realistic with yourself, are you really going to read 5 chapters in one day? Doubtful. I probably won't take my own advice on this one, but start early. Take a tip from Nike and JUST DO IT.


2. Snacks 
I know this may not be the best tip, so why would I put it so close to the top? Well, because it helps me tremendously. I can't go to the library without something to munch on! It helps me get my mind off the stress of studying and helps channel my frustrations elsewhere than the papers in front of me. The harder my work  gets, the more I chew... which is good for you and burns more calories anyway! Obviously choose healthy snacks, or this tip will just make things worse for you.
When packing a library snack I go for a green tea, some kind of fruit or veggie, and something crunchy and salty like pretzels or goldfish. You know what you like, just try to make it a good balance. Not pigging out during finals is hard, that kraft dinner may be taunting you from the cupboard, but you want your brain to be in the best shape possible for the amount of knowledge you're going to try to cram into it.

3. Take a Break 
Again, you may think I'm crazy for putting this one on the list, but it works for me. Your brain can only retain so much information at once! The general consensus is that you can fully concentrate for about 30-45 minutes at a time. The amount of time varies on the person, the subject and whatever, but you get the idea. If you're sitting go take a walk, take a shower, cook a nice meal. Just don't forget to come back to your notes. If you really have a hard time coming back, set yourself a timer. For every 30 minutes of studying you get a 10 minute break, I think that's extremely fair. Or if you're like me and will stare at a wall while trying to figure out what sound a giraffe makes for 15 of those 30 minutes, set yourself goals that relate to amount of material covered, such as after I read this chapter I can go on the internet and youtube what a giraffe sounds like.

4. Self-Control 
This is possibly one of the most useful apps for studying! Unfortunately, I believe it's only available for mac. The app lets you choose sites to "blacklist", then you set a timer and those sites will be blocked from your browser! It's great. You can still use the internet, just not facebook, or twitter, or pinterest... I could go on. http://selfcontrolapp.com/

5. Music or no Music? 
Depending on what I'm working on music may or may not be part of my routine. When it is, I prefer something without lyrics because I find myself singing along and adding choruses to my study notes... Although, if you're musically inclined turning your study notes into songs is a GREAT way to study. My study playlist is Modern Meditations on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIOcXpq_Gb4&feature=list_other&playnext=1&list=ALHTd1VmZQRNola_Qi3erQCWklYoF9JrpG).

I hope this helped you procrastinate from the work you should be doing, it sure helped me not study for my midterm Wednesday, so now....