The Future (It's happening right now....and now...)

Hello, all my lovely blog readers. I'm sure you've given up on me by now; this semester, I unfortunately can't eat dinner in Morrow as regularly I would like. I apologize.

I am writing this post at the moment because I wanted to explain another change to the blog this semester. Today is Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, which is the day of celebration before Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, and traditionally lasts until Easter; many believe it is only 40 days, but it is technically 47, as Holy Week (the week prior to Easter) is not included, yet Lent is still upheld. As many of you who were around me last spring semester know, I take the season of Lent very seriously. Lent is normally believed to be a time of simply giving something up; however, it is also a time when people try to engage more in positive activities, such as volunteering. In essence, Lent is a time for self-discipline and personal reflection.

When I was younger, my mother always encouraged me to give up something I loved: chocolate, TV, soda, etc. For about ten years in a row, I gave up chocolate. It was hard but somehow I made it through, and that first bite of Reese's or Hersey's on Easter morning was the greatest taste ever. Also, the intense blood sugar spike and headache afterward was great, too.

Around the age of 14, I decided to take Lent more seriously. Instead of just giving up chocolate, I decided on all sweets, or anything with refined sugar. The next year, I cut out High Fructose Corn Syrup and artificial sweeteners like Splenda or Aspartame. The year after that, I included caffeine.

Now, every Lent I give up all foods containing refined or artificial sugar, HFCS, caffeine, fried foods, and also "land" meats (beef, pork, and lamb), so poultry and fish are okay to eat (don't get all Smith on me about chickens not being able to fly. I know that, thank you, but they have wings and are therefore considered air animals in my Lent book.)

Don't try to pull the whole "bread is sugar in your body" and "fruit is a natural sugar" on me, either. I'm pretty sure I've thought this through quite a bit, and I'm well aware of the guidelines I've set for myself. I don't mean to be rude, but those comments might have been floating around for about, oh I don't know, 6 years.

Lent is not universally practiced, nor is it required in the Christian faith. I even know non-Christians who follow the time-line of Lent simply because it is a good guideline for testing one's willpower and discipline. Overall, what I'm trying to say is that it's a completely personal choice.

Therefore, I want to let you all know that I won't be posting during Lent, with the rare exception of truly exceptional meals. I will have to be pretty picky with my food choices in the dining halls, meaning I will be eating a lot of boring, rabbit food, and I am trying to move away from distractions such as TV and internet.

I apologize I won't be posting for a while, and for the serious tone of this entry. I just wanted to let you all know what's going on, and that I didn't forget you all.

I love you all, and I hope you have a wonderful Rally Day!


Next guaranteed posting: April 4th, 2010.

So I've missed a few...

Hello everyone! I know I've missed a few posts, but let me tell you, it's hard to update every night. So that might not be happening as regularly as it did last semester. I don't know what it is, something about actually doing my work this semester makes it hard to post every day. It would be a lot easier, too, if Jen Krain got off my back about it. Jeez, you'd think there were no other blogs about Morrow Dining floating around the interweb.

So, going back a few days, I will briefly talk about Sunday brunch, and then last night's Spanish fantastica.

Sunday brunch was a typical affair: lots of still drunkenness, some nomz, and a very relaxing atmosphere. I like brunches in Morrow the best, simply because less people usually attend than the dinners during the week, so it is quieter and more relaxed.

The people next to me are taking photos on Photobooth. I can hear the countdown.

Anyway, there was the usual assortment of omelets and bagels, along with scrambled eggs, sausage patties, French toast, and hash browns (I think). I nommed on some delightful eggs and sausage, and those who partook in the French toast option found it greatly to their liking. Samara was a little disappointed that Sarah could not make her omelet for her, but I guess Samara will just have to snag Sarah earlier next time. *Cough*

Not a whole lot happened a brunch that day. Mom and Dad Breger-Krain were late, and there were some interesting stories about the night before, although they all seemed to wind up being Mary-Kate avoiding crazy color-when-blue-and-yellow-are-mixed article-of-clothing-worn-on-the-upper-part-of-the-body girl, and the team losing members as the night went on.

So that's the 411 on Sunday brunch.

Last night was Spanish night. Morrow seems to be thriving on Spanish food more than normal, or at least more than I noticed last semester, so to have it again was all the more welcome. There was potato kale soup, paella with sausage and shrimp, chicken, brussel sprouts, nommy bread, and fucking blondies and butter-crunch ice cream. I had a little of everything, except the soup, and it was all quite delicious.

The dessert was a force to be reckoned with: Samara and I warmed up our blondies for a bit in the scary microwave (I can feel the radiation still) and put the ice cream on top of it. Sally confessed that she was never sure which side (Morrow or Wilson) should get what flavor of ice cream; I told her I was partial to butter-crunch, but there were those who favored the neon mint chocolate chip. Literally, straight out of the 90's, folks.

Photobooth, still going on. Really? It's been about 29340938409289 photos so far. You look the same in every one...

Tonight I might not report as it is stir-fry night and we all know what I get...shrampy shramp, mushrooms, onions, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts, all over rice, made in hot oil with teriyaki and sesame sauce. Whew. And nomz.

Alright, that's all for tonight (er, last night and Sunday). Have a great Tuesday evening and I'm sure I will see you all at Morrow tonight!!

Nomzzz nomnomnimty.

Unexpected Spice

Welcome back, friends. Tonight was a fun night in Morrow Dining Hall, as we had boneless barbecue chicken, fries, random veggies, buttermilk biscuits, and delicious chocolate cream pie. It was like summertime nomz for very not summertime weather. Always looking ahead, Morrow. I like it.

I'm gonna be honest here:
I'm not the biggest fan of barbecue. I don't like feeling an impulse to shower after I eat because the food is so incredibly messy. Like that kid. However, the chicken tonight was thankfully boneless, allowing me to be as dainty as possible and eat it with a fork and knife.

The barbecue sauce proved to be much spicier than anyone expected. I'm not sure how much everyone enjoyed that, but I know it added a big kick to the normally predictable BBQ blend.

The fries were of the steak variety, and scrumptious as always. I brought my own Old Bay seasoning to add to my fries. Wait, you haven't heard of Old Bay seasoning, New England? Oh, that's right, you don't know what a real crab cake tastes like. Sorry about that. Maybe, New England, if you left your little New England bubble and made a little trip South, you would understand. Just maybe.

Want to know what Old Bay tastes like? Ever had Red Robin seasoning? It tastes like Red Robin seasoning, but so much better. Nomz.

Moving on, the buttermilk biscuits were moist and had a unique taste. And Samara just burped in my face. Gross. So gross. Back to the biscuits, they were slightly salty but that was handily remedied with lots of butter. And she just burped again. Jeez.

The best part of the meal had to have been the chocolate cream pie. It was creamy (duh), sweet, and oh so decadent. The crust was crunchy and sweet as well. If you opted for a little chocolate sauce on your pie, it was even sweeter, and, in my PMS-ing-and-I'm-sorry-TMI opinion, even more delicious.

It was also a lot less crowded than normal. I guess some people would choose roast sirloin over spicy barbecue chicken. Not me, friends.

Tonight is the last night of Morrow dining of the week; but don't worry, I will be back to report on Sunday brunch, with still-drunkness details as always.

So, for now,

Nom Nom Nom. Nommmz.

Breakfast Time!

Good Evening everyone! I want to start off by apologizing for last night's lack of a blog post; I had a scrumptious meal at stir-fry night, prepared by the ever-lovely Sarah, and I just was so caught up in work that I completely forgot to write! Oops!

Tonight, as I'm sure your calendars will tell you, was B4D night. Brinner. The usual Wednesday night attraction.

Now I'm sure everyone is still bathing in that glorious post-pancake afterglow, so I wanted to write this early so that feeling will not dissipate too quickly.

For dinner tonight, we had omelets to order, fluffy buttermilk pancakes, sausage links, home fries, cherry or blueberry coffee cake, bagels, and the ever popular grits.

I partook in almost everything except for the omelets and the grits. Good decision in my mind. The pancakes were light and fluffy, and they tasted deeelicious when dipped in syrup. I don't care what anyone says, dipping is the way for me. Every piece has just the amount you want. But I understand those who want their pancakes thoroughly saturated with syrup; it's definitely a personal decision. Did you know that I wouldn't eat syrup till I was about 17? Yeah, I absolutely hated it.

The sausages seemed to be hit or miss; I enjoyed them, but I opted for the slightly darker ones, so maybe the taste was a little different than the lighter ones. The home fries were a nice blend of regular and sweet potatoes, and later replaced with tater tots once we ran out. Always classy, Morrow. Always classy.

The coffee cake was wonderful: moist and soft on the inside, oatmealy and crunchy on the outside. Jen Krain and I went splitsies on some of the blueberry kind, and we were very glad we did. All we needed was some ice cream. Any flavor, and considering MK and Jenn went all the way to Cush-Em to get Snickers ice cream and were thoroughly disappointed, it probably would have been vanilla.

The bagels were, well, bagels. I heard the omelets were delicious like normal. Tonight I wasn't feelin' the egg taco as much. Maybe next time.

In other news, we talked extensively about Disney Channel Original Movies. What was your favorite? I was a Brink fan. And we all know my story about Motocross. Double-Teamed can probably fall under the same category for me as well. And then we talked about old-school Disney Channel and Nickelodeon shows. Oh man, it's like being a kid again, only with the ability to not laugh at every fucking curse word I hear...hehehe. God, I hated being a kid.

Woah, back to the Now. The present. Currently, my tummy's a little on the full side. I might have to take a nap. A nice, 13 hour nap.

Alrightyz (what the fuck is that?!), I will catch you all back here tomorrow. Have a good night, everyone.


Morrow Hugz,

Nommmznomnommm nomity.

Bonjourrr!

Bonjour, everybody! I am pleased to write about French night at Morrow Dining Hall tonight. However, because it is so late, I will keep it short, so you darlins' can read this before you fall into a blissful slumber.

Tonight the menu offered: French Onion Soup, Chicken Cordon Bleu with Wild Mushroom Stew, Rice Pilaf, Sauteed Green Beans, Salad Bar, Dressings, Chocolate Mousse, Strawberry Garnish

First, the French Onion soup was quite good. I am not a die-hard F.O. soup fan, but I do like the occasional bowl. I was pleased with the amount of succulent onions, although I do wish the broth had contained a bit more salt.

The chicken Cordon Bleu with wild mushroom stew was surprisingly good, as well, even when coated in a sauce most of us could not recognize immediately. It's always nice to put meat inside meat, and add cheese somewhere in there, so I'm pretty content.

The wild rice pilaf was, well, wild rice pilaf..had to mess that one up. The green beans were not too crunchy, not too soft.

I will dwell on the mousse a bit as it seemed to be what people wanted to talk about most. Speaking from experience, mousse is very difficult to make. It's far too easy to have an unnoticeable inconsistent texture while mixing in the eggs, and if you stir it too much, the reaction between the sugar and the eggs makes it super grainy. And that's just making a small portion. I don't want to know how hard it is to make a large amount of it. That being said, the mousse was slightly grainy, but overall very rich and decadent. The whipped topping was typical Smith fare, and the strawberries were gone before we could go back for seconds. Overall, I was pleased with the dessert (duh, it's dessert, and we all know that's my favorite meal!)

Sometimes I like to imagine Julia Child coming back to eat with us, preferably for B4D, and surveying Smith food herself, as I like to think she is the catalyst for the amazing choices in so many of our dining halls. I think she would really like eating in Morrow; she was loud and rather crazy, like most of us regulars.

I hope everyone has had a great second Monday of the semester. Personally, I know I haven't been able to get into a normal sleep pattern, but I hope that will change soon enough.

Love you all! Au Revoir! Nomz!

First Brunch of the Semester!

Hello, all you lovelies! I hope you're having a happy Sunday procrastinating. I know I am.

This morning at brunch, the level of still-drunkenness was at a minimal. I'm sure it will pick up as the semester continues, but I believe many felt the way I did last night: sleep can be better than booze. Especially when still reeling from the first week of the semester.

This morning we had the option of oatmeal, eggs Benedict, waffles, home fries with onions, bagles, banana bread, and ICE CREAM. Oh and melon and salad.

I enjoyed the eggs Benedict, melon, and home fries. And half a bagel, shared with Kati. And two cups of coffee. I'm regretting that last decision right about now.


The eggs were delicious, although I'm partial to less hollandaise sauce on my eggs Benedict, personally. The home fries were wonderful--Jen Krain even scooped some into her cupped palm for the walk home...a little greasy, but I understand. The toaster was at it's prime temperature, so our bagel was toasted beautifully.

I heard the banana bread was quite good, and Vilma developed a delicious concoction with banana bread, ice cream, and, I think but don't quote me, maple syrup.

Okay, quick unrelated question: in Man V. Food, whenever he eats something super spicy, the audience always asks if it's the hottest thing he's ever eaten, but HAVEN'T THEY EVER SEEN THE SHOW? DON'T THEY KNOW HE WILL NEVER ANSWER THAT?! Jeez. Sorry.

Moving on...

I know Mary Kate wished bacon had attended brunch, but I know the ham on the eggs Benedict made her smile. And we always love to see M-K smile.

Nev and Julie reemerged. Finally. Missed them.

Mom and Pops Krain attended...duh. Who could miss their excessive cuteness?

Am I forgetting anything? Probably. This is a shorter post, mainly because I don't want to distract anyone from doing their work for too too long. SO GO DO IT!

(But if you do want a good distraction, http://manbabies.com/popular is so awesome/so weird. Example below)




Morrowz love,

Nom nommmm nomity

The Mystery of Rachel's Meatloaf

Hello, everyone. I am currently watching Iron Chef America, and although I do not ever wish to be on the show because I would only make cookies and cupcakes and no actual food, I thoroughly enjoy their creativity.

Tonight in Morrow was during at-home cookin'. Well, except for my house, because my mother never made me meatloaf because she didn't like it. I think I have mentioned this before. Anyyywayyy...

For dinz tonight, we had Caesar salad, spinach salad, meatloaf with mushroom gravy, lentil patties, (dirty) mashed potatoes, corn, blueberry oatmeal delicious cake, and buttercrunch ice cream. Contrary to what was on the 2eat site, there were no buttermilk biscuits. A disappointment, but we survived.

"Thirty minutes have elapsed"

I was suffering from some stomach issues at dinner time, so I, unfortunately, was not able to partake in all the delicious offerings. I nommed on some salad, corn, and a little mashed potatoes and gravy, and, of course, dessert. All super helpful to my stomach ache. Psh, sure.

From those who ate the meatloaf, it was apparently quite good. Rachel looked down at her plate later in the evening, and discovered a bite taken from her meatloaf that she did not take, and was not there moments earlier. Twas a little scary. The mushroom gravy was quite flavorful, and a very nice touch to the mashed potatoes. I put the term "dirty" in quotes because they were not described as such, but dirty mashed potatoes typically are prepared in the way we had them tonight--with the skins mixed in. Yum.

The corn was, well, corn. It's hard to go wrong there. According to Nina, the lentil patties were very good.

For dessert, Miss Samara and I put some of the ultra delicious blueberry crumble cake in a bowl and placed the buttercrunch ice cream over it. She warmed hers for a little bit, I did not. It might have been the most delicious thing, ever. I wanted to never hit the bottom of the bowl...I might have made a few trips back to the dessert bar to prevent that from happening.

Mary-Kate was responsible for the delightful musical choices.
Julie entertained us with her always smart-driving-in-treacherous-conditions stories. We apparently repeated the same statement a few times, yet I cannot remember it at all.


"Fifteen minutes to go"

Overall, tonight was delicious homecookin', so appropriate since Morrow is our true home. I will be reporting about brunch on Sunday, so have a great and safe weekend, and never forget: nom nom nommmmz nom nomity nomnomnom.

Fry Me Up, Baby

Hello all! Tonight in Morrow, like every Tuesday night, was stir-fry night. I'm going to keep this post short, mainly because I have a ton of homework I still haven't finished, but also because stir-fry night is a classic.

Rice, chicken stir-fry with peppers and onions, as well as a beef option, or the always popular make-your-own stir-fry were our choices tonight. I opted for the make-your-own with my favorite chef, Sarah.

I had some broccoli, bamboo shoots, onions, mushrooms, a little tofu, and shrampy-shramp in mine. Along with spicy oil, plum, and teriyaki sauce. All deliciously placed over rice. Yum yum yum.

Pineapple yet again for dessert. No complaints, here.

I'm told the chicken was excellent, as well.

There you are, folks...I told you it would be short. I won't be around tomorrow night for B4D, since I have to be at the WOZQ GENERAL INTEREST MEETING AT 6PM WHICH YOU ALL SHOULD COME TOOOOOOOO


Lovez you allz. Nomzz nom nom.

Welcome back, Welcome back, Welcome back

Why hello, my lovely blog readers! It's so nice to be with you all again, and I am also so happy for the happening of the greatest event this side of the start of classes: Morrow House Dining Hall is once again open for business.

I know, it's been too long. Dreaming of warm, freshly Sarah made omelets and the sweet, sometimes explosive laughter of surrounding friends all J-Term long has kept us going. But now, we can rejoice in the reopening of our favorite culinary establishment.

Tonight for dinner, we had Hearty Vegetable Soup, roast pork, Hungarian Noodles & Peas, roasted sweet potatoes, sauteed green beans, salad bar, dressings, and Applesauce Cake.

I'm going to be straight with you (that's a first): I did not try the soup, salad bar, sweet potatoes, or cake. And also, instead of green beans, there were green peas. I had those, though.

The roast pork was quite delicious. A little dry in some parts, but that tends to happen with meats such as pork, turkey, and chicken where the natural juices of the meat are difficult to retain while cooking, and the use of the juices after cooking is not common, unless in a gravy. Boy, do I love gravy.

Many, particularly Julie and Rachel, enjoyed the skin of the pork the most. That's pretty expected, as the outer layer is often the crispiest and most buttery.

The Hungarian Noodles and Peas were surprisingly good. A little sour cream, a little pepper, quite nomz. I thoroughly enjoyed them with my pork.

Sweet potatoes have never been my favorite. If I wanted something sweet, I would have ordered dessert. Nevertheless, there are those who are die-hard sweet potato fans (talking about YOU, Lilly). I suggested Rachel to eat hers with a spoon it looked so soft and nom-able. She enjoyed them immensely. As did Samara. I'm glad they did; the sweet potatoes looked delicious, and, as stated by our lovely HVH, when you roast them, the sweetness is enhanced, making them even more succulent. Did I really just use that word?

For dessert, I chose pineapple offered in the salad bar over the cake.

When we got back to our rooms, Rachel came to me with a strange medical condition. She was breaking out in hives. Was it something in her room? Was it random? Or...was it something she ate? I jokingly asked her if she had any citrus earlier in the evening, and she said no. BUT WAIT! Rachel realized she had the MANDARIN dressing on her salad. She wasn't a huge fan of it, but she did eat some of it. So apparently, Mandarin alludes to the mandarin orange extract in the dressing.

Mystery solved. Sherlock Holmes would be stumped on that one, too.

The jukebox raged, nomz were enjoyed, and laughter filled the air. All in all, a great first meal back, and we can't wait to see what the rest of the semester in the Morrow Dining Hall has in store for us.

Ta-ta for nowz,

Nomnomnom nomity nomzzz nomamamam nom.