I’m officially done with this semester… Finally! It was by far my most stressful semester yet at HSU, but considering next semester’s line-up* I may be in for another rollercoaster ride come January 22nd.

Regardless, right now I’m enjoying guiltless sleeping in and hanging around doing this-n-that. We’re going home for the holidays in the middle of next week and I’m working on re-installing Windows on my laptop so I can take it with me to process photos. Being able to post to my Flickr while I’m away on vacation would be ideal– it’s such a burden to come home with 2 or 300 photos that need editing!

I have made some possibly nerdy vows in terms of how I want to spend my break: lots of reading and lots of piano. Chris has been giving me lessons the last week and I’ve been catching on quite well! I’m excited to learn my favorite songs by Nobuo Uematsu that I grew up listening to, albeit, in the form of MIDI. I’m surprised by what a difference even 15 minutes a day can make, and how it all eventually becomes so fluid.

It was also my intention to read some more books by my favorite author, Christopher Moore, over the break. The Humboldt County library collection has all of his books, but unfortunately they’re spread out amongst all the individual cities. How stupid is that? I see some Half.com transactions in my future.

* Advanced Photography, Printmaking II, Beginning Ceramics, Sound Body & Sound Mind, Sociology of Altruism and Compassion, and Native American Art of the North Coast. Phew!

Last year my best friend gave Chris and me a one-year subscription to Nintendo Power for Christmas. It was a blast from the past, for sure! Being December, one year later, our subscription has ultimately come to an end. But at least it went out with a bang– this month’s issue was chock full of good stuff. We both got particularly excited to discover that they are re-making a 3D version of our childhood favorite, FF IV, for the DS!

Earlier this week a big storm rolled over the coast and as the rain poured in, my internet went out. It was a mix of good and bad– finals are literally right around the corner, so I definitely had other things to do, but I hated being away from my Flickr friends!

It also gave me the chance to experiment with this bread recipe. I had made the Vegan World Fusion Cuisine cookbook’s Bananananda Bread exactly as described, with a few additions of course. But it calls for 1/2 cup of maple syrup, which would cost a small fortune if I wanted to bake this on a regular basis.

So, I tinkered and came out with a recipe that, as far as I can tell, tastes just the same. I will admit that the shredded coconut is totally optional, as I’m yet to cook with shredded coconut and actually be able to taste it.
Ananda is Sanskrit for “bliss,” so here’s my recipe for Banana Bliss Bread!

Banana Bliss Bread:
Makes 1 loaf

2 cups White spelt flour
1/2 cup Walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup Shredded coconut
4 tsp Baking powder
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1/4 tsp Salt

2 Bananas, mashed
3/4 cup Unrefined sugar
1/2 cup Apple sauce
1/2 cup Dates, pitted and chopped
1/4 cup Safflower oil, plus 2 Tbl
1/2 tsp Vanilla

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9×5″ bread pan and set aside.

- In a large bowl, mash the bananas, then add the rest of the wet ingredients. In a smaller bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients, then slowly mix the dry into wet. Pour into bread pan and sprinkle with more chopped walnuts.

- Bake for 1 hour. Check the center with a toothpick– if it comes out clean, you’re all done! Let cool for 5 minutes, then remove from pan and place on a cooling rack.

I like to spread a bit of vegan butter on mine and have it with my morning coffee or tea!