Five Reasons You Should Be On Instagram

Posted by on Apr 17, 2012 in Photo A Day, Photography, Social Media | 2 comments

Instagram, the long-time iPhone-only app, recently came out with an Android version and then got acquired by Facebook. Plenty of people got all pissy about it because it might “ruin it.” Hopefully it will remain the amazing app it is. For now I see it as the more the merrier.

Instagram is pretty much my favorite app. Now I enjoy a good game of Draw Something and Words with Friends and I won’t deny my admiration of the Starbucks app in developing customer loyalty. But despite all that, Instagram is my favorite and all awesome people should be using it. Why? Well let me tell you five reasons you should download Instagram now.

1. It’s like a photo diary of your daily life.

Now be wary, I might get a little deep and sappy here. As someone who lives and plans life from big moment to big moment, Instagram makes me appreciate the smaller moments of my everyday. From time to time I look at my photo feed as a whole and appreciate the beauty of each day from the sunrise on that early morning drive, to my pup watching snowflakes fall, to random joy I find at the office. “Just another cup of coffee” or “that bouquet that’s going to wilt tomorrow” becomes a little artistic pick me up that lives beyond that moment in my memory. When we’re not looking, time flies, and I don’t want to look back at days, months or years of my life and forget the things that shape me, however small. Okay, cheesiness done.

2. It makes your phone photos looks pretty sweet.

They always say the best camera is the one you have with you. Let’s face it, in this day and age I don’t carry my beautiful Nikon SLR (appropriately named “the baby”) with me everywhere, but you will rarely see me without my iPhone. Even when I don’t have service. I know, I’m “that girl.” That all being said, my phone takes pretty decent photos and is there to click away at a moment’s notice. With Instagram you can then add filters, enhancements, and/or the appearance of shallow depth of field (that blurry back or foreground that makes it look like it was taken with an SLR). Then instantly share with your other social platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Tumblr, Foursquare, email, Posterous) or just with your Instagrammers.

4. It’s a creative outlet.

When I was little I used to lay awake at night, not able to sleep because I had creativity that I needed to let out. I’m always looking for a way to do, share, and create. Whether for a little mid-day therapy or just because I saw something amazing, Instagram lets the creativity out. And it’s #instagood.

4. You can connect with the world through images.

Now the three reasons I named before are reason enough, but here’s where Instagram gets really cool in my opinion — the community. As humans, images are one of the things we can connect to across cultures, languages and other barriers. Photos evoke emotions and while I may live an entirely different life as someone across the country or globe, we may both react the same to a photo. You can choose to set your photos to private and share with a small group of approved friends, but I feel the experience is most rewarding when shared with others in the community. I may have never had a conversation with someone I follow, but I feel through their images I get to know them. They get a peek into the beauty of my life and I get a peek into theirs.

5. You can connect your images through hashtags.

A few weeks ago my friends called me a “hashtag whore.” I cried a little bit. And then I told them why #hashtagsareawesome! Hashtags help you connect with others in the Instagram community. Similar to Twitter, Flickr, etc, they categorize your photos so you can connect like images such as #travel, #breakfast, #iphoneography, or #dogsofinstagram. There are also photo challenges that use these tags to share with others that participate. Basically it’s a good way to start sharing with a wider range of people. If you want to check out some of the most popular hashtags on Instagram, you can see the top 100 here.

So to sum it up, Instagram is fun and also free. Download it and then follow me @amfairbanks. Let’s be friends (pretty please with a cherry on top)! What’s your Instahandle?

Whole Wheat and Oat Banana Bread

Posted by on Apr 15, 2012 in Recipes | 1 comment

I’m always looking for healthy recipes to try, and while playing on Pinterest the other day, I found this banana bread recipe with honey and applesauce. I really suck at following recipes, so of course I made my own version with a few changes to fit my taste.

I sometimes find recipes that use all wheat flour taste funny because 1) the wheat flavor overpowers the rest and 2) wheat flour cooks hotter/burns easier. I kind of have a love affair with oats in baking, and they add a nice “earthy” flavor, as my mom calls it. This recipe is definitely healthier than my shortening version, but it doesn’t leave more to be desired like some health food — aka “I’m eating this to be healthy, but I may as well not eat it at all because it tastes nothing like the ‘real’ version.” I also reduced the amount of honey since the blackberry honey I have is super sweet. If you are using clover honey, you may want more, but I feel like it has a good amount of sweetness.

Now that I have the recipe just right, those other three bananas sitting in my banana hammock better be wary. I think another loaf may be necessary!

Whole Wheat and Oat Banana Bread with Honey and Applesauce

Ingredients

3 overripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup applesauce
2/3 cup honey
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/4 cups oats
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Directions

5 Tips on How to Cook a Turkey

Posted by on Mar 14, 2012 in Recipes | 0 comments

I know, I know — you think I have my seasons all mixed up. It’s March and I’m cooking a turkey? Well, my husband got this 12-pounder for free back during the holidays and since we didn’t entertain at our house, it just went into the freezer. So this week we decided to pull it out and give it a go. This is my first turkey I’ve cooked all by myself, so let’s just say there was a learning curve and plenty of Google searches about how to cook a turkey, tips, tricks and recipe ideas, and later on, how to know your turkey is cooked.

So I’m not a turkey expert, but I certainly learned a lot through this and it turned out delicious! So here are my tips for cooking a turkey.

1) Cook it breast side down.

I found this turkey recipe that suggested it and used it as the base for my recipe. The breast isn’t as exposed to the heat, so it doesn’t dry out so much, plus gravity brings the juices to the bottom. I’m a dark meat girl, but the white meat was so juicy this way, I almost like it better than the dark.

2) Cook the stuffing separate for faster cooking.

Or not at all. You still want to stuff it with vegetables and spices, but adding stuffing means it has to cook longer and, therefore, it can sometimes dry out more. I put onion, carrots, celery, garlic and fresh parsley in mine. To some of you, this may sound like a sin, but since I don’t love stuffing that much anyway, so I was okay with skipping.

3) Stuff goodness between the skin and the body.

Slide your hand between the skin and the body of the turkey, gently pulling them apart until your hand fits in. Then add spices. I put chopped garlic and parsley in mine. It was a good decision.

4) A cookie rack on a baking sheet is a good replacement for a roasting pan.

This being my first time making a turkey, I didn’t have a roasting pan. Somehow I must have missed that “must-have” on my wedding registry back when I got married. Anyway, the bird simply needs to be away from the direct heat of the pan, so I put a cooling rack on top of a cookie sheet instead. If you use a cookie sheet, just make sure it is deep enough to catch the juices (I used a disposable pan on top of a sturdy regular one because I’m that lazy). Works like a charm!

5) You’ll know your turkey is done when the leg pulls away from the body easily.

If you have a meat thermometer, the internal temperature should be 165 degrees and the juices should run clear. My thermometer was reading to the right temperature, but the breast still looked a little pink (since it was cooked down), and this being my first time, I was paranoid I would kill my family. Okay, maybe just get some nasty food poisoning, but that’s no good either. I looked up all sorts of facts about cooking poultry and why it might be pink. Anyway, I found if you pull the legs away from the body and they open easily, it should be done. (that’s what she said…sorry, couldn’t resist).

"Mama, I would like some turks!"

Anyway, those are my turkey making tips. Now to make turkey noodle soup using the carcass!

Double Rainbow Cupcakes

Posted by on Mar 11, 2012 in Recipes | 4 comments

It was my boss’s birthday yesterday, and any old cupcakes just wouldn’t do. We always joke around about the double rainbow Youtube video that went viral a couple years ago. If you haven’t seen it, you may have been living under a rock, but don’t worry, I will enlighten you.

And now that you are inspired by this dude’s amazement of the DOUBLE COMPLETE RAINBOW, let me take it to the next level — double rainbow cupcakes!

Now I was exploring my pin boards on Pinterest and I saw this and this – rainbow inside and rainbow on top — and I came up with the idea to put these two brilliant ideas together. And wow, just wow. They’re so beautiful and bright! WHAT DOES IT MEAN?!

Now to make the cupcakes it’s pretty simple. You can follow this rainbow cupcake recipe, but basically you take white cake mix, divide it into 6 bowls and dye them red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple. I used plain white cupcake wrappers so you can see the colors through them. Then you pour the batter in layer by layer, about a spoonful in each one and bake according to the directions on the box.

When they come out, they look all tie dyed on top, but the side looks in rainbow order.

Then for the top, I just dyed 2/3 of my cream cheese frosting blue (I prefer it for taste, but if you want the clouds to be white rather than off white, go for a powdered sugar frosting), frosted the top and added sprinkles. With a pastry bag, add clouds on either side and stick your rainbow candy in securely. You may want to practice on wax paper to make sure you cut the candy ribbon in the right length so it will stay up.

That’s it! These are perfect for birthdays, or they would be a super fun St. Patrick’s Day dessert! Then you just eat whilst pondering the meaning of their beauty. It’s a double rainbow all the way. Full on. Whoa, that’s so intense!

No Food in the Fridge Salad

Posted by on Jan 23, 2012 in Recipes | 1 comment

It’s 6pm; You get home; You’re starving; You open the fridge only to discover nothing there worth eating. You don’t want to leave the house because you’re tired and you don’t want to order in because you’ve been trying not to so often. This has happened to me several times, which is exactly how I created this recipe! I don’t usually eat a ton of canned food, but when you need it fast, this is a yummy and fast way to go.

There are a few things that are almost always in my cupboard, and they all go great in this recipe. Plus, even better is if you have a few other ingredients you can kick this up a notch. The first time I made it, my husband was super impressed — had no idea I had made it out of laziness, not creativity. No reason to enlighten him, right?

Tomato, Corn, Bean and Chile Salad

1 can corn

1 can beans (I prefer black, but this time I went with kidney since I didn’t have any…go figure)

1 can diced tomatoes

1 small can green chiles

1/2 cup green onions, chopped (if you don’t have any, add 1-2 tsp onion powder)

1-2 cloves garlic, minced (again, if you don’t have it, add a tsp garlic powder)

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)

1 teaspoon cumin

Directions:

This is really complicated. Open all the cans, pour contents into a bowl with onions and garlic, and stir. This is even better the next day once the flavors have melded together.

Now that it’s made, here are a few ways I’ve eaten this:

Add to a tortilla and make a burrito

Add to a quesadilla

Serve on top of lettuce for a fiesta salad

Eat with chips like salsa or nachos

Add to pasta

Eat plain

Easy peasy. Enjoy!

DIY Cupcake Box

Posted by on Jan 22, 2012 in DIY & Crafts | 0 comments

Yesterday was my dear friend, Ashley’s, birthday and so I thought what better way to celebrate than with a cupcake? Of course, I already bought her gift of earrings on my trip this last summer to Peru, so I went for the next best thing — a cupcake gift box.

Customize the colors, add a little sparkle and a cherry, and you have yourself a super fun way to dress up a birthday gift.

Here’s what you need:

1 cupcake box (or a few if you want to make several for friends)

2 shades of acrylic pant (the cheap kind will do)

1 small bottle of glitter

red cotton ball for the cherry

clear-drying glue

I found these cupcake boxes at my local Joanne’s, though they may have them at other craft stores.  Next I put down some newspaper and painted them in the desired colors. It took about three coats for the colored and four coats for the white. Take the top and lightly paint it with a thin coat of glue. Hold over a paper plate and immediately sprinkle with glitter, ensuring it stays on the surface. Let dry for 30-60 minutes.

Add a big daub of glue to the bottom of the cotton cherry and press it firmly to the top of the cupcake top.

Let dry overnight, or follow the drying directions of your glue and paint. Add in your little gifts, and voila!

2-Minute Dinner Salad

Posted by on Jan 17, 2012 in Recipes | 2 comments

Tonight was like many of my nights — I came home tired and starving for something good (oh, and good for me is usually a goal, too). Rather than opt for a frozen dinner, I decided to toss together a salad with some of easy ingredients in my fridge.

And herein lies the lesson –

Pre-prepared veggies are entirely worth the extra money. Spring mix is just too easy to toss into a bowl with no washing, salad spinner, or cutting. Cherry tomatoes require no slicing or messy hands. Olives — well they are just delicious and there’s always a can in my cupboard. Oh, and forget grating. Crumble in feta and it’s extra delicious in 5 seconds. The only things I cut were some onion slivers for flavor and some avocado (because yum), but you could even leave those out if you’re feeling super lazy. All in all, dinner was done in under two minutes — about the same time as that not-so-healthy Hot Pocket. Your hips thank you in advance.

Dinner Salad with Tomatoes, Olives and Avocado

Serves 3-4 as a dinner salad; 5-6 as a side dish

5 ounces of spring mix (1 container)
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1/2 can whole olives, drained
1/4 cup crumbled feta
1 avocado, sliced
a few slices onion, very thin
vinaigrette of your choice 

Add all ingredients, toss together and serve.