Baby It’s Cold Outside!

No this is not Rod Stewart guest blogging...although that would be mighty keen!

It’s really starting to feel like winter though, I don’t know about you but I was caught unprepared, sloughing it out in the wet slick streets of Toronto yesterday! I was dreaming of warm banana chocolate chip mini-loaves (check out the recipe below!) as my “winter boots” succumbed to the slush and soaked my toes. What a sad wake-up call, my mini-loaves were alone at home and I was at the doorstep of Robarts! Don’t feel too sad for me just yet. Robarts was a temporary stop on my way to the Winter Warm-Up event at Varsity Centre! So you can save your pity because the lovely people at Varsity saved my spirits! If you weren’t lucky enough to attend the event I’ll fill you in on the scoop.

I sauntered up to the VC in my soaking wet boots and entered the dome (dom dom dom!)...I’d never been in before and I can assure you, it is massive yet surprisingly warm! There was a hip hop session scheduled;  I got to chit chat with the instructor, who informed me he’s got a rad bootcamp class at Hart House. It sounds like a whoppin' 45-minute, obstacle-filled workout! I moved over to the arena were the event was bumping!  Okay, bumping might be a bit of an exaggeration but there were quite a few people testing out the fresh ice, it looked like a lot of fun!

In case you didn't know there's  drop-in skating each week at Varsity Centre and you can rent skates there. So where did my true Winter Warm-Up joy come from? Why the food of course! After 2 cups of free hot chocolate and a large serving of hearty chili I was warm enough to brave the cold for my walk home! All in all I was happy I went, I wished a few more friends had braved the winter with me but alas it was really cold out! The crowd was a bit thin, perhaps because of the low temperatures. Maybe next year a lunchtime event will get a bigger crowd...I think the dome could also be used for soccer or perhaps some golf? What do you think makes for a fun, daytime party?

Until next time friends!

p.s. Here's a lil' recipe that will hopefully warm your hearts and fill your bellies!

Banana Chocolate Chip Loaf/Muffin/Mini-Loaf Recipe Phase 1 Preheat oven to 350 F In a large bowl mix together: 2 Eggs 4-6 Old Bananas 1.5 cup white sugar 0.5 cup vegetable oil 1 tsp vanilla *feel free to add a chopped apple in here if you like that sort of thing Phase 2 Separate bowl! Mix until just blended! 3 cup flour 2 tsp baking POWDER 1 tsp baking SODA 0.5 tsp salt Phase 3 Feeble’s Tip: After adding the flour, mix as little as possible! Fold dry ingredients into wet ingredients. Add as many chocolate chips as you want! I recommend the semi-sweet variety but milk or white chocolate chips are also delicious! Barely mix them in!!! Phase 4 Toss into your baking pan of choice. Loaf pan, muffin pan (with or without liners - if you go without you may want to grease the insides of each cup) or mini loaf pan (same idea, can use parchment paper too!). Bake at 350 for about 20min, check to see if golden brown and smelling delicious. They might take less time or might take more. Let your sniffing senses guide you! Remove, let to cool for a few min, then remove from the pan! Enjoy with a tall glass of milk and friends! Consequences of over-mixing: Tough muffins!!!

Toodles for now!

Laura