Pomelo! Pomelo!

I tried a pomelo for the first time!

It's a strange looking fruit - something between a giant lime and a green grapefruit.

Actually, it's appearance is what brought me to buy it and try it. The fruit tastes like a grapefruit but it is much less tart. I tried eating it the way I eat a grapefruit - by spooning out the fegs - but, the pith in a pomelo is too thick! In fact, the pith makes up a majority of the whole fruit! 

Anyway, after cutting it into quarters, I started wondering exactly what a "pomelo" is. Well, a pomelo is a citrius fruit that is actually an ancestor of a grapefruit! It is native to South and Southeast Asia. Many of the pictures I see of pomelos are of pear-shaped pomelos but mine was very round.. As is expected with citrus fruits, a pomelo is a very good source of Vitamin C. It is also very high in Potassium and is a good source for B-vitamins, iron, magnesium, and protein.

Here are some more pictures:

Go try a POMELO today! :)

Jewel's Random TidBits - I hope (if you didn't know it before) that you learned a new word today: Pith - the white, fleshy part of cirtus fruits.

I Learned the Hard Way (#ILTHW)

Okay, so many of my life experiences are the epitome of "learning things the hard way". Yeah there's advice from parents, suggestions from friends, and guidance from mentors and teachers but somehow, true life-learning always comes from first-hand experiences. This is especially true in my life so much that I decided to blog about these #ILTHW experiences.

Watch out for stories from the life of Jewel that will probably have you literally lol'ing (? hahaha). Anyway, this is just a quick post to let y'all know what's coming soon!

Have a great week! :)

Jewel's Random TidBits - I got the idea of sharing my #ILTHW experiences one day while cutting an un-ripened plantain. Stay tuned for the full story - haha!

Cold Morning, Hot Afternoon

In Central Texas, this is our October and November reality.

It seems as though the weather can never truly make up its mind here in Austin. As the seasons change in late September to early October, it's sometimes hard to decide what to wear when getting ready in the morning since the weather can change so drastically throughout the day. Aside from the obvious fashion issues that arise, there are health issues that also come into play. For example, if we dress for the heat of the afternoon in the morning, we might catch a cold - not cute, at all.

Soooo......I came up with three strategies that I (try to) use in these awkward Central Texas weather months.

Here we go:

(1) Take. Your. Umbrella. With. You. I have too many stories about being stuck in the rain without an umbrella. Walking unprotected in the rain has so many consequences from ruined hairstyles and clothes to catching a cold.

(2) A light jacket and a cute beanie = fashion staples. I probably sound like Captain Obvious here but wearing a light jacket that you can just throw in your bag later is the best way to combat this type of weather. Also, a cute beanie can help protect your head from cool weather and when it gets warmer you can easily take it off without ruining your hairstyle underneath.

(3) Layers on layers on layers. Top, light jacket, scarf, outer jacket, pants/skirt, leggings, leg warmers, socks, boots....too much? But seriously, layers are the answer to keeping your style on point through weather changes without suffering from the temperature extremes.

Stay warm and stay cute! :)

Jewel's Random TidBits - Try some Mate green tea next time you want a legit study drink! I love the taste and strength of this version of green tea.

Coffee Shops

Mmmmm....the smell of coffee. :)

I wasn't that much of a coffee fanatic until I started college. While I still prefer tea, coffee is still a legit drink. I like coffee because of the smell and the comforting feeling that comes with it. I don't have a need for it in order to study, pay attention in presentations, function in the morning,...etc. It's more of a sentimental thing for me. My love for tea, however, is a different story - which I'll save for another blog post.

Anyway, since I've been in Austin, TX, I've had a chance to try out some cool coffee places besides just Starbucks and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. Here are three lists of the best coffee shops in the U.S.:
1. America's Best Coffee Bars (www.foodandwine.com)
2. America's Best Coffee Shops (www.usatoday.com)
3. America's 10 Best Coffee Shops (www.huffingtonpost.com)

(psssstt....notice how Austin shows up in the first link TWICE :) I love my city)

Most of the places that made these lists are in New York, California, Oregon, or Philadelphia. If you're living in one of those states or plan to visit anytime soon - check out one of these shops and let me know what you think! However, if you're not going anywhere near those states anytime soon, I encourage you to check out some local places in your hometown. It's generally easy if you just search "Best Coffee Shops in *insert city name here*"

Happy coffee-ing! :)

Jewel's Random TidBits - I was wondering how popular Tea Shops or Tea Houses were, so, I did a quick search and found http://www.teamap.com/. Check it out! You can actually map out tea places around the U.S. and internationally!

Lemon-Mint Snaps and Strawberry-Mint Lemonade

When life gives you lemons....make fresh cookies and a delicious drink to match!

I love finding new types of cookie recipes and trying them out - especially exploring past chocolate-chip, sugar, snicker-doodle, or oatmeal-raisin cookies.

When my sister found a recipe for "lemon-basil snaps" I jumped right into the idea of baking them! We couldn't find any basil in our house at that exact moment BUT we do have mint growing in our backyard so we took full advantage of that. I used a variation of this recipe from a 'Southern Living' cookbook we have. I replaced the basil with fresh mint and left out the pistachio nuts.

The cookies were delicious!

My father was talking for a while about making fresh lemonade. He doesn't like the powdered-just-add-water kind of lemonade because of the taste and health issues associated with it - I completely agree with him! Since I was in the lemon-y mood (haha :-D) I decided to go ahead and make fresh lemonade. The cookies also put me in a mint-y mood (okay, I'll stop now...hahaha) so I got some more fresh mint from our garden to add. But I didn't stop there....I took some strawberries out of the fridge and found a way to include them. I didn't use an exact recipe but here's the gist of what I did:

1. Squeeze lemons into a lemonade container and remove seeds
2. Finely chop fresh mint leaves that have been thoroughly washed.
3. Split strawberries into two sets: one to be chopped and the other to be crushed
4. Add water to the lemon juice to double the volume.
5. Squeeze half of the strawberries into the lemon water. Try to get as much strawberry juice out of them then add the remaining pulp directly to the mix.
6. Chop up the other half of the strawberries and add those to the container.
7. Stir in the chopped mint.
8. Add sugar and more water until it tastes like perfection! :)
9. Chill, serve, enjoy!

Take a look at how my cookies and drink came out:

I hope I've inspired you to be creative in your kitchen!

Jewel's Random Tid Bits - I'm not a food scientist, but I believe that squeezing some of the strawberries will help your lemonade taste more like "strawberry lemonade" rather than just "lemonade with strawberries in it".

BANANAS for Banana Bread :D

(Excuse the cheesy title...I am fully aware of my very *unique* sense of humor)

I've already expressed how I feel about bananas. -_- But, I really, truly feel that somehow banana bread exists JUST so that I can happily eat bananas (juuuuusssstttt kiddding :)).

Anyway, the point is - banana bread is a very delicious way of reaping the benefits of bananas without eating them directly.

Benefits of bananas?....Here are a few that I found on foodmatters.tv:

Bananas can:

• Help you overcome depression
• Help you prevent kidney cancer
• Protect you from chronic disease
• Help you quit smoking
• Shine your leather shoes
• AND MORE! Check it out: 25 Powerful Reasons to Eat Bananas

Here's a banana bread recipe, try it out and enjoy the benefits!

Jewel's Random TidBits - I can probably count the amount of times I've eaten banana bread on my hands. The time that inspired me to write this blog post was last month when my mother and sister made mini-banana bread muffins.

Salsa con Queso con......Bell Peppers and Corn?

First of all.....please excuse my bad Spanglish :)

A few weeks ago my sister and I developed a new kind of dip (or at least I think its new :) ).

We decided we wanted to eat some chips and salsa con queso for a snack but spruce it up a bit. Since we had some bell peppers and corn in the fridge, we decided to just be creative and vowed to eat whatever we made.....regardless of how good it would taste.

So, we diced the bell peppers and sauteed them in a little butter with the corn. Once they cooked down to our liking, we added just a little bit of garlic powder then added the whole mixture to hot salsa con queso.

The result was delicious!

Even though this recipe is slightly strange, it's really simple and very good. :) I hope this post has inspired you to be creative when you cook - it definitely pays off!

Jewel's Random TidBits - The original plan only included bell peppers but my little sister LOVES corn so.....it was a natural addition. :)

Back to Blogging

Ah! I'm back!

I haven't even been blogging that long to have a "back from hiatus" post but.....here it is!

Although it's been over a month since my last post, I've been so inspired! Look out for more random health posts, especially about bananas, and running posts about these new shoes I got!

Keep reading!

Jewel's Random TidBits - I have a very strong dislike for bananas in general, HOWEVER, over the past month I've found some interesting ways to sneak them into my daily life. I'm so excited to share them with you!

AVOCADOS

.....are delicious!

Over the past few days, I've developed an extreme love for avocados. They're easy to mix into things I already eat such as salads, salsa, sandwiches, burgers, and more! If you're not into avocados yet, try one! :)

There are many health benefits of avocados which I'm sure I'll blog about later! Keep reading - I appreciate you!

Jewel's Random TidBits: I personally would not advise eating more than one avocado each day. Since avocados have a lot of natural fat, eating too many avocados could have more of a negative health effect than a positive one.

I RUN AUSTIN

Yes, I run Austin and I have the shirts and finisher's medals to prove it. Since my first semester of my freshman year in college I have been running races for the pure joy of it! I started with the Susan G. Komen 5K run, then ran the Austin Half-Marathon twice, and finished my first marathon - the Austin Marathon - this February. There's just something about crossing the finish line and knowing that you just accomplished something so great.

There's a unique inner will-power and mindset that is required of race-runners.

Running races teaches me so much about myself! The volunteers that line the race route who give out water, Gatorade, and moral support can only motivate you so much. There comes a point where their cheers and words of encouragement dwindle and you have to remember why you're running to push yourself onward.

I would recommend running a race to everyone! Start somewhere you're comfortable with (for example, a 5K is 3.1 miles) then work your way up!

Jewel's Random TidBits - Pay attention to how old/new your running shoes are. If they're too old, using them in a race could hurt your shins and if they're too new, you can run the risk of getting blisters.

A Special Version of Guyanese Pinetarts

I always joke that my future husband will be one of the best fed people ever but it's true! I absolutely LOVE spending time cooking and baking! When I was ten I started my own cooking club at my house. My friends would come over and I (with my mother's help) would teach them how to prepare fun and easy recipes.

It's such a fulfilling feel to see people enjoy dishes I've cooked. 

Even now I constantly jump at opportunities to cook for my friends and family - from the annual Christmas dinner parties I host for my college friends to baking treats for my organization's fundraisers to being in charge of my family's Thanksgiving turkey.

Below is a video sampling of my abilities! In this video I make a special version of Guyanese pineapple tarts which look like mini-pies as opposed to the traditional triangle style. Enjoy :)

Jewel's Random TidBits - I made this video for my final project in one of my college communications classes.

Summertime Shine

It's summer! While the first official day of the summer season is not until June 21st, my "real" summer started a long time ago. For us college students, the last class day was over a month ago and grade schools all over are closing for summer break in the next week or two! If the end of the spring semester is not indication enough, this Texas heat is all the proof I need.

Speaking of the heat, there are so many things that need to be taken care of before we dive completely into our summer activities. One major thing: awesome skin care.

It's so funny to see my friends' reactions when I tell them that I'm going "tanning". Being a darker-skinned girl, they get confused wondering why I need to "tan". But what I mean - and I guess what I should say - is that I'm going to soak up the Sun. I love spending time in the Sun because of what it does to my skin. I'm pretty sure you've heard of the "glow" that every woman desires. Well, you can get a natural one by simply spending time outside! The Sun provides us with natural vitamins and nutrients that keep our skin sparkling.

However, whenever you talk about the Sun, there are dangers involved such as sun burns, skin discolorations, and risk for skin cancer. So, take care of yourself! No matter what skin shade you have - WEAR SUNSCREEN! You won't regret it - at all. Also, don't forget to DRINK LOTS OF WATER so your skin stays smooth and glowing. Otherwise, you're going get dehydrated and your skin is gonna leather-up --> not cute.

Have lots of fun in the Sun this summer and be safe! :)

Jewel's Random TidBits - Since our skin needs sunscreen, I always wondered if our hair needed it as well and if hair sunscreen products existed. Yes it does and yes they do! Just type 'hair sunscreen' into any search engine and you'll see!

Namesake

As I was going through my list of possible names for this blog, I came across a very interesting article online. The title reads 'To Cut The Risk Of A High-Fat Meal, Add Spice' and the article can be found here. Published by www.npr.org, the article describes how 'heavily spiced' foods can lower your risk for sicknesses such as heart disease and diabetes. The specific spices mentioned are tumeric, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, rosemary, paprika, garlic, and oregano. From personal experience I can tell you that those spices go a long way to improve your dish's taste! Another common health concern is having too much salt in a regular diet. Well, I'm neither a doctor nor a professional chef, but I'm telling you that using these spices will help to eliminate your need to add extra salt to your food and therefore reduce your risk for hypertension and high blood pressure.

Delicious dishes should be heavily spiced, not heavily salted.

Now bear in mind, I came up with this blog's name BEFORE I found this article. I was so pleased to find it and read about things my parents have been telling me about since I was born! This is why I feel that 'Heavily Spiced' is the perfect name for this blog! It describes me and the topics I plan to blog about so well. There really is nothing mundane and normal about me. No explanation would suffice - you're just going to have to read and see!

Jewel's Random TidBits - 'Namesake' - the title of this post is also the title of one of my favorite movies, 'The Namesake', directed by Mira Nair and released in 2006.