Happy March! In honor of the new month, I’ve been marching right through my to-do list all day :-D. Laundry’s done, one assignment is done, another assignment is part-done, and I’m thinking about starting work on my group presentation any second now …

For breakfast today, I finally experienced the delicacy that is the Fitnessista Breakfast Cookie. Look how huge it is!

Following Gina’s instructions, I prepped the cookie last night, making several adjustments because I don’t have protein powder. My b-fast cookie included:

• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
• 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 large ripe banana, mashed
• 1/4 cup fresh pumpkin puree
• 2 chopped dates
• 1 chopped Hershey’s Kiss
• 1 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
• 1 tbsp toasted spicy/salty/sweet pumpkin seeds
• 2 tbsp unsweetened soymilk

I spread the whole thing on a plate in cookie shape and left it in the fridge overnight. It was still somewhat goopy this morning, so I put it in the freezer for about 20 minutes to firm up as I’ve seen other bloggers do. (I thought later that powdered milk would have been good to replace the protein powder. I might try that next time to see if it removes the need for freezing.)

When I finally got to sink my teeth in … YUM!! I ate it with a spoon from the inside out since the inside was less firm and melting faster — and I always like the edges of “baked goods” the best anyway:

I expected the cookie to take all of 30 seconds to eat, but it took much longer! It was firm and chewy (not to mention the frozen spots that tasted like ice cream), and I really loved the addition of pumpkin seeds because they kept my teeth so busy and added extra crunch. I was also worried that I would miss my hot oatmeal, but I kept the longing at bay with a cup of hot soymilky black tea:

I had expected to get hungry for a snack before lunch since I usually bulk up my oatmeal with yogurt, but there was no need! The cookie held me over for a solid four hours.

I kept my lunch main course light because I had big plans for lunch dessert! I mixed together a quick salmon and black bean salad with leftovers from making yesterday’s BSI Sweet ‘n’ Spicy Black Bean-Salmon Patties.

The salad had:

• salvaged ends of rotton roommate lettuce
• 1/4 cup canned salmon
• 1/4 cup black beans
• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 2 tbsp salsa
• 4 shredded baby carrots
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• paprika
• 1 oz fat free feta, 1 tbsp toasted pumpkin seeds, and freshly ground black pepper all sprinkled on top

This salad was actually so delicious that I kept refilling it with more lettuce because I didn’t want it to end!

For dessert, I had this little single-serving bag of Kettle Corn that I picked up from work. I hadn’t had kettle corn in ages, but I remember loving it!

Which brings us to the title of the post. This is microwave popcorn, and I forgot that I do not have a microwave! Whoops.

So, first I tried setting up the popcorn bag in my makeshift double boiler.

Once the cover was on, I waited. And waited. And waited. When there was still nothing after 30 minutes, I threw caution to the wind, tore open the bag, and dumped its contents straight into the pot:

Sweet sounds of popping began within mere minutes of the cover going on :-).

Meanwhile, there was melted kettle corn butter all over the empty bag that I definitely did not lick.

Fully popped:

Mmmmm, it was better than I remembered!! Of course, I sprinkled cinnamon on top, too.

In other news, it’s snowing again???? Give me a break!

Some things to do:

1. Submit your best recipes for inclusion in the Foods That Fit Blogger Cookbook ASAP.

2. Go win some yogurt and yogurt accessories from Yogurt and Berries!

How dependent are YOU on the microwave?