JTV lately.

So, I've been noticing a lot of people complaining about justin.tv's new advertisment layouts. Honestly, I checked out my channel page (for the first time in a long time because I use mIRC to read my chat) and to me nothing is excessive. All of these ads can easily be avoided if you do not want to encounter other websites.

Just please take a look around. Ustream, Stickam, YouTube, and all these other successful broadcasting websites have advertisments. It shouldn't be that much of a big deal to us.

If you do happen to see any flaws or bugs when trying to get around the site, please do not complain or harass the closest justin.tv staff member you have access to. There is a "Report A Bug" button on the bottom of every page that does this for you in a more professional manner.

Well, I'm going to go and buy supplies for my Oreo truffles. Hope to see y'all around!

Starbucks...let's learn to customize!

Alright, well, I've been getting requests about what my favorite drinks are at work. I finally actually sat down to write them out! Hopefully yall can try them sometime or at least start to mess around with your favorite drinks so they taste just right!

~Venti iced green tea lemonade, 2 splenda. I fill the green tea halfway past the 1st line (to have more tea) and then the rest of that section with lemonade. I love my tea.
~Soy orange mango Vivanno with 4 scoops matcha, 1/2 a banana (2 scoops protein for me because it can get to be too much). This is a great breakfast energizer.
~Tall americano, 2 splendas and cream. This is good for mornings or cool evenings.
~Grande soy white hot chocolate, 1 pump Gingerbread (if available), no whip. Oh yum. This is delicious and oh-so-sweet.
~Solo tall salted caramel signature hot chocolate. Yeah, I guess that one was kind of simple except for the shot of espresso.
~Tall green tea cream frappuccino, 4 scoops matcha, 1 pump melon, double blended. The melon can get to be too sweet if you put too many and I love matcha. It may seem intense but this drink is sweet enough.
~Baby WM. Yum... Okay, well, don't go to the counter and order it as a "Baby WM" but this is how to order it. One pump white mocha, one shot of espresso, small dollop of whipped cream (just enough to cover espresso). When I get it, I swirl the espresso around until half the whipped cream is melted and I drink it that way. This makes the whipped cream milky and creamy and also mixes the white mocha into the drink.
~I also like teas. My favorites are Calm, Zen, Green Ginger, Joy, African Red Bush and Organic Chai.

Well, those are my favorite drinks! I'll try and post more when I make them!

Banananananana. Wait...I think that was too many.

New-Fashioned Banana Pudding
Serves 8-10 people

Ingredients:

• 1 cup milk
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1 (5.1 oz) package vanilla instant pudding mix
• 1 (12 oz) package vanilla wafers
• 6 large ripe bananas (alot of times you can get them discount for older bananas, depending on the season and availability. those work really good.)
• 4 large egg whites
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla or banana extract

1. Combine milk and half-and-half in a large bowl; add pudding mix, and beat at a low speed of an electric beater until blended. Beat at medium speed 2 minutes or until smooth. Set aside.
   
2. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Arrange one-third of vanilla wafers in the bottom of a 3-quart baking dish. Slice 2 bananas; layer slices over wafers. Pour one-third of pudding mixture over bananas. Repeat layers twice, arranging wafers around edge of dish.
3. Beat egg whites at high speed of an electric beater until foamy. Add 1/3 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form and sugar dissolves (2 to 4 minutes). Fold in vanilla; spread meringue over pudding, sealing to edge of dish.
   
4. Bake at 325 degrees F for 25 minutes or until golden.

I've found the easiest way to separate eggs is to use your hands. Break the egg into a bowl and grab the yolk with curved open fingers and transfer it from each hand to the other, kind of like how you play with putty. This will separate the yolk from the egg whites easily and then all you have to do is throw away the yolk or keep it to make something else.

The meringue can be hard to make too. You have to add the sugar a little at a time or it won't mix correctly and will be too runny. Also, DON'T FORGET THE VANILLA EXTRACT!! I did that one time and it tasted bland. Blech.

Well, thats my banana pudding. Hopefully you were around to watch me make it live!

Easy Oreo Truffles

In my opinion, these are better than Classic Chocolate Truffles. I'll put those up later.

Easy Crowd Pleasers (Kid Friendly)

Ingredients

• 1 package (1 lb. 2 oz.) Oreos - finely crushed
• 1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese

1. Combine softened cream cheese and Oreos until well blended in a large bowl. I used my hands. Note: you can either wear yellow gloves or use bare hands. The Oreos can get a bit prickly after a while.
   
2. Refrigerate until firm, about 30min-1hr.
   
3. Roll into 1-inch balls
4. Coat to your liking.

You can use powdered suger, sugar sprinkles, coconut, melted chocolate, crushed nuts, more crushed Oreos, or anything to coat your truffles! They taste great right afterward or you can harden them again in the refrigerator. They stay good for about 2 weeks in the refrigerator. Enjoy!