Brussels

First off, sorry I haven't posted in a while...
Initially it was because of exams.
Then came recovering from exams, which meant I did nothing for a couple of days.
Then some serious trip planning took place, which meant I wanted to get away from the computer when not researching for my upcoming adventures.
Anyway, the point is, I've been a busy bee with no time to blog.
But now that I've got some free time...

Brussels!

We only spent a day in Brussels, so it was a bit of a crazy day.
We did all the toursity things, and ate even more chocolate and waffles.

We went to the EU Headquarters.

We ate double fried frites and VERY large sandwiches with french fries inside of them.

(Yes, my dad is wearing a safari hat.)

We found a bakery perfect for Paul.

We went to the "most magnificent square" in Europe, Le Grand Place.

We ate chocolates from the creators of the praline.

We saw Manneken Pis, who was surprisingly small for such an icon.

And I ate a lot of waffels.

Pizzaaa!!! - UPDATE

Paul and I just made THE BEST pizza ever.
What made it so amazing?!
We added chopped olives TO THE DOUGH.

See the olives in there?

We made the dough using the Pizza Dough recipe from the previous post, but after the 10 minutes of resting, we kneaded in chopped black olives, then let the dough rest for 10 more minutes.
And OH MAN was that extra kneading and 10 minutes of waiting worth it.

Mmm...so good...

Pizzaaa!!!

Paul and I made pizza from scratch (dough and all!) last weekend!
And it was GREAT!

It was actually our second attempt.
The first pizza was only alright, and we KNEW we could make it better.
So, last Saturday we made a few modifications to the recipe and...SUCCESS!

Before baking...

And after...

Our pizza tasted EXTRA delicious because...
1. We MADE the dough!
2. We chose exactly what toppings we wanted.
I went for a patchwork quilt of toppings - half with pesto, half with tomato sauce, and then some squares with olives and some with just cheese (mozzerella AND cheddar - oooh baby!)
3. WE MADE IT!


Pizza Dough
adapted from Everybody Likes Sandwiches

1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons) yeast
1 cup warm water
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1. In a large bowl, combine yeast with warm water. Stir until dissolved.
2. Add sugar and let sit for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in olive oil.
4. Add flour and salt. Stir vigorously/knead with hands until fully combined.
(If the dough isn't coming together, add a little bit more olive oil)
5. Form into a ball and leave to rest for 10 minutes.
6. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
7. Sprinkle flour onto a baking sheet (or two) and press dough into a thin layer (about half a centimeter).
8. Bake dough until golden on the edges and the centre, about 15 minutes.
9. Remove from oven and top with desired toppings.
10. Return to oven and bake until crust is golden and cheese is bubbly, about 10 minutes.
11. Om nom nom.

Steph the Groupie

On Thursday a bunch of went to see Bedouin Soundclash!!!
The concert was AMAZING!
We were RIGHT at the front and I felt like such a groupie, oogling at Jay the whole night.

Aaand, the best part of the night?

I got to meet the band!!!

(It was technically my second time meeting them, but that was a couple of years ago and they didn't remember me (I'm not surprised), so it was like meeting them all over again!)

Paul and I went really early - like 15 minutes before the doors opened (which isn't really that early, but just seemed early because there was no one else there). 

We were loitering around trying to decide which door to wait at when I spotted them walking down the street...

"Paul! Oh my god! That's them!! That's them right there!!"
"Go talk to them!"
"What?! Now?! But..."

"Go!"

And then he pushed me and I awkwardly ran after them going "Hey! Hey!"

They turned around and I talked to them for a little about how they played at Crofton and how I'm from Vancouver but in Leeds on an exchange and other chitchat.

Paul stayed back while I ran up to them, but then came over and talked to them too.

They were SO cool and super nice.

Ahhh!

I was so proud of myself for running after them!
And for going early - see, being crazy about punctuality does pay off!

Anyway, the concert was SO good.

They were really great live, it was such a fun night :)

Exams :(

I have my first exam tomorrow.
This is how I feel...

PS: I have recently discovered my talent for drawing stick figures in Paint.
PPS: Paint is also a very fun form of procrastination.
PPPS: Alright, I'll get back to studying for my Climate Change Science exam now.

A Date!

Today Paul and I went on a date!
We went to Casa Mia, an Italian restaurant located not too far from campus.
We decided to go there because (a) we like Italian food, and (b) we got a 2-for-1 coupon from a bag of chips - yay! for coupons!

I had suuuper good fettucini with mushroom cream sauce - mmm...cream sauce...
And Paul had spaghetti and meatballs.
And, since we had our handy dandy coupon, we figured we'd get dessert as well.
I had a lemon tart, which was a bit custardy, making it even better in my books, and Paul had tiramisu.

I didn't take any pictures because I wasn't planning on blogging about our meal.
But then I got bored of studying and decided I would do something other than look at food blogs.

So, since I didn't take any photos, I thought I would draw you a picture instead...

Om nom nom nom nom.

The Ultimate Distraction: The Internet

Studying for exams is taking a toll on my sanity.
Thank goodness for the Internet.
In addition to reviewing Climate Change Science and Ecological Economics, I've been perusing my favourite websites and blogs.

These two are almost constantly open...

• Foodgawker
• Serious Eats

And I've even stumbled across a couple of cool YouTube channels...

• Watch Listen Tell
• Burberry Acoustic 

Check them out if you're in the mood to look at pictures of food or listen to some cool bands!
Alright, back to work for me :(