Edible Jack O'Lantern

Happy Halloween everybody! In celebration of this wonderful holiday, I have created a non-traditional jack o'lantern. You see, us college folks aren't allowed to have the large knives required to carve a pumpkin. And we aren't allowed to light the candle inside the pumpkin. And we don't have a front porch to place them on. So, instead, I made this. It was fairly simple, quite delicious, and close to nutritious. So here's how it works:
First, toast a piece of bread. It doesn't necessarily have to be completely toasted (in fact, I personally prefer it that way), but it needs to be warm and fairly solid (you'll be cutting it into a pumpkin shape later...or now, if you find that easier...which you probably will).
Then, spread a very generous amount of Nutella on your piece of toast. Come on, it's Halloween, you're allowed to get a little out of control.

It'll end up looking like this (except not sideways...I have no idea why my photos sometimes turn sideways when they're being uploaded. I took this picture portrait style. There's no reason it should look like that, and it doesn't when I look at the actual file. hmmmm....maybe there's a phantom haunting my computer....Anyway,)
Next comes the fun part. Making the face. Take a banana and cut it in half length-ways. Then, cut out the curviest part of the banana and use this as the mouth. Cut out pieces to make missing teeth.

(Again, I have no idea why it appears vertically on here. The file itself is not like that. grrrrr...). Be sure to keep the stem of your banana. Now, place this on your piece of toast where you think the mouth should go. (If you haven't already cut your toast into a pumpkin-shape, make sure to keep some room so you can do this later).
Next comes the eyes. You can use whatever you want/have available for this part. I thought of using cheerios because I happen to have some, but ultimately decided on raspberries because I want to use them before they go bad. I loved how the raspberries turned out, though. It made my jack o'lantern look blood thirsty. To make eyes like mine, using raspberries, first clean your raspberry (you should only need one). Then, slice off the bottom tip. Then, slice the remaining piece in half so that you have two rings.

Now, place these on your jack o'lantern where you think the eyes should go.
For the nose, I used an oddly-shaped banana chip. But you can use whatever nose-shaped food you have lying around. Place this where you think the nose should go.
Next, cut the toast into a pumpkin shape, being careful not to cut the mouth or eyes. (if you haven't done so already).
Finally, use the step of your banana from earlier and place it at the top, so that it acts as the "pumpkin stem".
And, voila: an edible jack o'lantern.

Feel free to eat the scraps as you go (that way you are able to have all the nutrition and deliciousness of a full banana....plus, you paid for this food, why would you want to waste any of it?). And be sure to eat, enjoy, and clean up the mess. Because if you used two plates like I did, there's definitely going to be a mess. And messes like this could be the scariest part of your Halloween.

Dorm Food

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Nutella and Pineapple Toast

Yes, this recipe is exactly as the title implies. And yes, I know how ridiculous it sounds to combine the acidic flavor of pineapple with the rich flavor of chocolate and the starchy flavor of toast. Believe me, I was skeptical at first too. But, I’m the one who came up with the idea and I’m one to test every idea I come up with, before deciding that it was a bad idea. And this one? Not a bad idea, at all.

You’re still skeptical. And I understand that. But I urge you to give this a try, and I’ll explain why it tastes to good after I tell you how to make it.

First, toast your bread. I use Franz Columbia River Sweet Oat Bread. Partially because the founders of Franz went to the University of Portland and donated the building all but one of my classes are in; partially because they’re local and local food is always good; partially because it’s the sweetest bread and healthiest bread I’ve ever eaten; partially because it toasts really well; and partially because it’s what my family uses and it reminds me of home. I am no spokesperson for them, by any means, but, man, I would make a great spokesperson for them because I am becoming OBSESSED with their bread. Oh, also, I discovered that, while I am not allowed to have my own toaster in my room, there are toasters in our hall’s kitchens. The smoke detectors are super sensitive and there are eight floors in Mehling, so I decided to toast my bread on Level 2. I would recommend the same to any college student because, let’s face it, you don’t wan

t to be known as the kid who set off the smoke detector and made everyone have to evacuate the building. Plus, I like my toast warm and just slightly crispy anyway.

Second, spread Nutella on top of the bread. For best results, this should be done while the bread is still warm. That way, the Nutella slightly melts, which gets it into all the nooks and crannies of the bread and creates a nice texture.

Third, add pineapple chunks to the top. Try to avoid the juice by taking each chunk, one at a time, from a jar, can, or fruit cup of pre-sliced pineapple. I would suggest not using quite as large of chunks as I used (which you can see in the picture), because it made it a tad difficult to actually eat. If your chunks are too large, you can cut them into smaller cubes, again, avoiding juice by placing one cube at a time on top of your toast and Nutella.

Finally, eat, enjoy, and clean. Pineapple is acidic and Nutella hardens when it dries, so it is important to wash your dishes and utensils sooner, rather than later.

This recipe is sooooooo good! It might be my favorite thing I’ve ever made. And it’s so simple! Surprisingly enough, the chocolate and Nutella tastes combine really well. You know when you have a sundae and you use chocolate sauce and then add pineapple sauce or chunks on top? It tastes sort of like that. And the seeds in the bread kind of act to add some crunch, which I enjoyed. I really look forward to adding to this recipe. I can imagine adding bananas and strawberries (though not for a while because, as I grow my own strawberries at home, I refuse to pay for strawberries at a store) to this and having a super fruity, somewhat chocolaty, midnight snack. This is not your start-of-the-day breakfast toast because it is way too sweet to handle first thing in the morning. But it makes an excellent snack or dessert. And it’s so easy! Everyone should try this.

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