A Brigham Young University Student Journal
I’ve never been to Mississippi, but I am oh so grateful for all of the amazing people that live there now, thanks to this pot roast. IT CHANGES LIVES. I was on Pinterest, looking for fast, easy meals and this blessing popped up on my …
Thanksgiving is coming up and FOOD is the word. When thinking about Thanksgiving, many of us number turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and pie among the many things that we are grateful for. Many of the memories that I personally have surrounding this time of year …
by Lindsay Sandberg
With winter setting in, nothing sounds better than a rich soup. This butternut squash soup recipe is delicious. Using an immersion blender makes the process even simpler. Enjoy!
by Rebecca Hamson Sometimes you just need a delicious dessert, and you need it fast. These incredible pumpkin chocolate chip cookies can be made in just 15 minutes (including baking time) and with only three ingredients!
by Sarah Perkins This has long been a favorite of mine, and if you happen to have a lot of zucchini that you just don’t know what to do with, it’s a great way to use it up!
by Alissa Holm
Every college student has experienced that moment: You’re starving. It’s midnight. Everything seems to be closed. So what do you do? Eat another bowl of cereal? Run to McDonalds and get a McDouble? Beg your roommates to make you food? Well, you don’t have to do any of these.
There are so many more options in the student-filled Provo/Orem area that can cater to your late-night cravings. Here’s a list of the top 5 places to eat in Provo/Orem . . . after hours.
1.) Guru’s Café Guru’s is a local and fun restaurant. They’re open until 10pm on weekends and are sure to provide a fun atmosphere for you while you eat.
My recommendation: The cilantro lime quesadilla with a side of sweet potato fries. You will not regret it.
2.) The Awful Waffle Just because the restaurant’s name has the word “awful” in it doesn’t mean it actually is awful. The Awful Waffle makes gourmet Belgian waffles, crepes, pizzas, and paninis—all until midnight on the weekends and 11pm on weeknights.
My recommendation: The Brussles waffle with raspberries and Nutella sauce.
3.) Sammy’s Café Sammy’s is a Provo favorite, notorious for its picture-filled walls, delicious pie shakes, and moustache obsession. And, they’re open until midnight every night.
My recommendation: The cheesecake pumpkin pie shake. The best combination of cheesecake and pumpkin that you’ll ever taste.
4.) In-N-Out Burger I grew up in Idaho, so I hadn’t had an In-N-Out burger until my freshman year at BYU, and it immediately earned its place as my favorite burger. In-N-Out is open until 1am on weekdays and 1:30am on the weekends. While you’re at it, be sure to check out their secret menu, found here: http://www.in-n-out.com/menu/not-so-secret-menu.aspx.
My recommendation: A regular cheeseburger with a chocolate shake. Can’t go wrong.
5.) Roll Up Crepes This restaurant produces both savory and sweet crepes—made to either fill you up for a meal or indulge your sweet tooth. The names of their crepes are sure to keep you entertained as well—they have everything from “Awkward First Date,” made with bananas and ice cream, to “Just Friends,” made with caramel apples, cinnamon, and granola, to “Honeymoon,” made with mixed berries, dark chocolate, and almonds. Oh, and they have sandwiches and paninis as well. They are open until 1am every night.
My recommendation: The Bachelorette—which has raspberries and white chocolate.
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by Jill Hacking My friend shared this delicious recipe with me and assured me that it’s super easy to make. I tried it, and I have to agree. It’s a great choice for those nights when you want a nice meal but you don’t feel …
by Alissa Holm Every year, my mom bakes between 5 and 10 pies of all flavors the day before Thanksgiving. In our family, pies are more than just a dessert—they’re a tradition. Nobody knows how to make pie better than my mother, so I’ve snuck …
In preparation for Halloween, the Stance for the Family blog staffers decided to have a holiday review night! Each staffer selected one or two crafts or recipes that had caught their eye on Pinterest and brought their creations along to share at our review night! Here are our thoughts below—complete with recipes, pictures, and our evaluations on how well they actually stack up against what’s advertised on Pinterest! (Be prepared—we had at least one massive fail!) If you’re looking for some fun Halloween recipes to try, you are bound to find something that interests you!
All the recipes and crafts we reviewed can be found on Stance for the Family‘s Pinterest account: http://pinterest.com/stanceforthefam/
Pumpkin Dump Cake (by Danielle Cronquist) 
If you are like me and are a firm believer that all recipes made in October should include pumpkin, then this is perfect. A delicious fall blend of pumpkin, cinnamon, and nuts, the different textures and yummy flavors make this dessert stand out as a divine treat.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix first six ingredients until well blended and pour batter into a 9×13 greased pan. Sprinkle cake mix on top and then cover with pecans. Pour melted margarine over top. Bake 50 minutes. If desired, top with cool whip or real whipping cream.
I’m not a whipped cream fan (call me crazy), so I opted out of that part and still think that it tastes delicious, but it is a great addition for whipped cream lovers. Pull together this easy recipe for a fall party, a hang out with friends, or for an FHE treat. It is sure to be a hit.
Cake Mix Cookies (by Jaden Anderson)
Cake Mix Cookies are a quick and easy treat great for any time of the year. Did we mention they’re also super delicious? In a large bowl, mix together one package of cake mix (any flavor will do, but chocolate and Funfetti are our favorites), 2 eggs, and 1/3 cup of oil. Feel free to experiment with M&Ms, ROLOs, chocolate chips, or raisins. Preheat the oven to 350°F while spooning out teaspoon size balls of dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Once the oven is ready, pop the sheet in for about 7–10 minutes, depending on how soft and doughy you want your cookies. Let the cookies cool for a few minutes, and then spread on cream cheese frosting if desired. Have fun with it and add on sprinkles, candy, or anything else you like!
Here’s what we had to say about these little gems:
Fall Pumpkin Dip (by Alissa Strong)
I wanted to try this recipe from the moment I saw it, simply because it was served in a pumpkin. What a great way to present food at a fall- or Halloween-themed party! This recipe is definitely a great addition to any fall table.
Mix the pumpkin, pudding mix, cool whip, and pumpkin pie spice together (by hand) in a very large bowl. Chill for several hours before serving. Meanwhile, carve your pumpkin! Spoon the dip into the pumpkin, sprinkle with cinnamon, and serve with fresh apple slices, vanilla wafers, or ginger snaps.
This recipe was easy and quick to make—definitely an activity you could get the kids to help with. My biggest downfall was choosing a medium-sized pumpkin instead of a small one. The dip didn’t even fill the pumpkin halfway! So I ended up serving the dip in a bowl inside the pumpkin, which was nowhere near as pretty a presentation as I’d intended. But as for the taste… well, here’s what the reviewers had to say:
Candy Corn Pizza (by Alissa Strong)
I knew a lot of people would be making desserts, so I wanted to try a main course recipe. One recipe I’ve been eyeing for awhile is this recipe for candy corn pizza! Don’t be deceived—it’s not sweet at all, although it still looks delicious!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a pizza pan with cooking spray and press pizza dough into the pan evenly. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese into a four-inch circle in the center of the pizza dough (the “white tip” of your candy corn!). Take 1 cup of shredded cheese and sprinkle it into a three-inch ring around the circle of mozzarella. Carefully spoon the pizza sauce over the ring of cheddar cheese (this will be your “red” layer). Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup of cheddar cheese in a ring around the outside of the pizza sauce ring (the “orange” layer). Bake for 12–15 minutes or until golden brown. Cut into slices to resemble candy corn.
This is another easy recipe—our reviewers all agreed that it would be great to make with the whole family. Kids can help sprinkle the cheese and sauce, and they will love eating pizza that looks like candy corn! One variation parents might like to try is doing mini-pizza versions of this recipe, so that it makes more “slices of corn” and more people can enjoy it!
Strawberry Ghosts (by Alissa Strong)
Wash and dry strawberries. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt white chocolate and shortening; stir until smooth. Stir in almond extract. Dip each strawberry in chocolate mixture; place on a waxed paper-lined baking sheet, allowing excess chocolate to form the ghosts’ tails. Immediately press chocolate chips into coating for eyes. Freeze for five minutes. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt remaining chocolate chips; stir until smooth. Dip a toothpick into melted chocolate and draw a mouth on each face.
I am a college student on a budget, so I modified this recipe slightly by eliminating the almond extract. The recipe worked just fine without it. (Seriously, Pinterest? You want me to buy a whole bottle of almond extract just to use 1/8 of a teaspoon? Not going to happen!) I had a lot of fun dipping the strawberries in the chocolate and making the “ghosts’ tails”—this recipe allows you to use the hull of the strawberry (the green leaves) for dipping, which is a lot easier than dipping cake balls or Oreo truffles.
It was after the chocolate dipping that my troubles started. The chocolate chips I had were way too big to use as eyes, especially for some of the smaller strawberries. So I just decided to draw the eyes on along with the mouths. The toothpick drawing took FOREVER! I’m definitely not an artist, so my ghosts’ faces looked far inferior to the ones in the Pinterest photos. But en masse, they actually looked presentable… and chocolate-covered strawberries always taste yummy! I’d probably put up with the longer preparation time for the festive end result.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bars (by Amanda Ricks; recipe from http://tjstestkitchen.blogspot.com)
Ever needed to make a quick dessert, but didn’t have many ingredients or much time? These Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bars may be perfect for you.
I let the cream cheese soften on the counter for a while then I added it to my stand mixer & beat it with a couple of tablespoons of water until smooth. I just wanted it to thin out a little bit.
In a separate bowl, mix the cake mix, pumpkin, water, & cinnamon together until it is smooth & well mixed.
In a 9×13 pyrex dish—sprayed with PAM—add HALF of the cake-pumpkin mix. Then smooth it out with a rubber spatula. Drizzle half of the cream cheese over the top of it and take a small spatula to smooth it over the top. Add remaining cake-pumpkin mix & also the remaining cream cheese just making layers.
Finally take a butter knife, stick it into the mix, and go back & forth over the top of the cake making figure “8’s” – to blend it a bit.
Preparation of these was not too difficult. I didn’t have a stand mixer, so I used a whisk instead. I also didn’t have a Pyrex dish, so I used a different kind of 9×13 and it turned out just fine. This recipe requires only a few ingredients, which was good for my pocketbook. In addition, the ingredients of this dish aren’t those that you would naturally sneak before you had the time to make the dessert (like chocolate chips or toffee chips.) Relatively healthy as far as desserts go, they were easy and delicious. As one of our Stance reviewers said, “I liked that these were pumpkin-y without being too sweet. And let’s be real—cream cheese makes everything better!”
Marbled Nails (by Amanda Ricks)
Pinterest has long fascinated me with the concept of “Marbled Nails.” According to Pinterest, if you put some water in a bowl and add in your nail polish, swirl the polish, dip your finger in, and remove, you will have a perfectly marbled nail.
Perhaps I’m reading the instructions wrong.
I got the room temperature tap water that was required. I put in some fun colors and swirled it around. I dipped someone’s finger in. The moment I’d been anticipating had arrived, and the results? Well, let’s just say they were a little different than I’d imagined. See for yourself in the accompanying pictures.
by Amanda Ricks As a follow-up to my last blog post on eating healthy in college, the following are a few recipes that are both healthy and cheap! Carrot Cake and Zucchini Bread Oatmeal ½ cup steel-cut oats 1 ½ cups vanilla-flavored nondairy milk …