Homemade junk food!

So I was watching Biggest Loser - but that show kind of has the opposite effect on me.  I don't watch it and immediately throw away my junk food and head out the door running and crying and expecting to lose 15 lbs a week.  Instead I kind of look at all their temptation and old, "bad" foods and just want them!  Fortunately I also know that stuff makes me really sick, and I am also really broke so I can't afford to be spending my yeast and gas money on fast food right now.  

So instead I did what any respectable college student/undercover housewife would do...I made junk food!!

I was thinking chili cheese fries, a milkshake, and chocolate chip cookies...but based on what I had in the house I had to compromise a bit and I ended up with chili cheese fries, tropical julius and peanut butter cookies :-)

Fries before baking

For the fries I took 3 potatoes and cut them up into little fry size strips, tossed them with olive oil, salt, chili powder, and Trader Joe's Everyday Seasoning and baked for about 15 minutes at 450 deg.

Organic quinoa

For the chili I really had to wing it...the only ground beef I had was frozen and being saved for spaghetti sauce later this month.  So I cooked up some quinoa then added 1/2 bottle of Newcastle (yes, still using that bottle from the chicken!), a can of diced tomatoes, about a cup of black beans, chili powder, cumin, oregano, garlic powder, and salt.  Cooked it all down for about 1/2 hr until it was getting a bit thick...

Chili, ready to be stirred and cooked

Strange thing I did - since I had an open can of diced tomatoes where I would have used crushed tomatoes to get a thicker consistency, after cooking for about 15 minutes I took out my potato masher and mashed the tomatoes up pretty good to try and break them down and make it thicker before cooking for another 15 minutes.  It works for spaghetti sauce, it worked here!

Glop it together, top with cheese, stick it back in the oven to melt and NOM!!!

They may not be pretty, but they sure are tasty!

Ok, Orange Julius I modified from several different recipes and again used what I had on hand (including a tip my old daycare lady gave me when she used to make these when I was a kid!)

Cool and delicious

1 cup Presby Punch (could also use water)
1 cup vanilla coconut milk
1/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate
1 raw egg (only use if you trust your eggs...this is the tip from daycare, it makes it really frothy and gives it a distinct "Julius" flavor!)
10-12 ice cubes
* blend and drink!







Super Easy but Crazy Delicious Peanut butter cookies

1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
dash of vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 Tb. flour
1 egg

*Mix everything together,
*Drop cookie size globs on a cookie sheet
*Lightly squish with a fork to get that pretty crosshatch look
*Bake at 350 deg for 10 minutes
*Let cool for a few minutes before removing them from the cookie sheet to allow them to set up

Perfect Peanut Butter Cookies!

So drawbacks to making your own junk food
- it takes a lot longer
- you have to do dishes when you are done
- it just isn't QUITE that same fat/sugar/salt hit that you would normally get

BUT benefits of making your own junk food
- it is freaking delicious!
- it is a LOT healthier
- it is a LOT cheaper

So I am happy that I decided to make it myself, as is my tummy, my tastebuds and my wallet :-)