The Cupcake Throwdown

S'more cupcakes made by the S'more Girls, one of the
four sororities at the Cupcake Throwdown in March

Back in March, Alpha Tau Omega hosted a Cupcake Throwdown at UTA. All the proceeds were donated to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Four teams entered to compete: Alpha Chi’s Cupcake Bandits, S’more Girls, Lone Star Zetas and Delta Ovengers. A Cupcake Throwdown is when teams create themed cupcakes. Then the judges decide who has the best cupcake. This year’s theme was Western Adventures. For example, The S'more Girls created S'more cupcakes using cocoa, chocolate, graham crackers and marshmallows and more chocolate.

The Lone Star Zetas hand a cupcake to a UTA Student.

I attended this event for a class project. The purpose of the assignment was to photograph an event and to tell a story. I was nervous going in because I don’t like to make people nervous or put them in an awkward situation and it seems when people see a camera pointed at them they do one of three things. They pose and smile, try to get out of the way, or stop what they’re doing and turn around. When I was taking photos, they were mostly from a distance, showing student’s backs and not much facial interaction. I remember there were two girls from the Alpha Chi Cupcake Bandits team that were eating cupcakes and hugging each other. I started to take a picture and as soon as they saw me they moved out of the way because they thought I was taking a picture of the display.

When I arrived, there was a crowd of about 60 people. The teams had tables setup on one side of the room, along the wall, the DJ on the opposite end and extra tables in the middle. The majority were walking around and socializing. When you first walked in, to your left were the S’more Girls, next were the Delta Ovengers, then Alpha Chi’s Cupcake Bandits and last the Lone Star Zetas. The table with the most students was the S’more Girls.

UTA students smile and dance "the wobble".

Throughout the whole event, the DJ had music playing. It was mainly pop/mainstream music. At one point they played "Wobble Baby", this upbeat rap song. A bout 10 students formed a mob and start dancing. I believe the name of the dance was called “the wobble”. It was very funny and quite entertaining actually. It was almost like a scene from “13 going on 30” when Jennifer Garner starts dancing to “Thriller” by Michael Jackson. Once she pulled Mark Ruffalo in, the rest of the crowd joined in.

 

Alpha Chi's Cupcake Bandits show their display to students.

In the end, I had a lot of fun and everybody else seemed to have enjoyed it as well. I got my photos and a few cupcakes, of course. The team that ended up winning was the Alpha Chi’s Cupcake Bandits. I definitely recommend attending next year’s Cupcake Throwdown. It’ll be hosted by the fraternities at UTA.

Do you have a favorite cupcake? If so, what is it?

Food Truck Frenzy

What better combination than a nice breeze, the warm sun and enjoying a delicious meal while listening to music. That’s the atmosphere the Food Truck Festival has to offer.

I was reading The Star-Teleg

Resident orders a smoothie from Maui Wowi

ram this morning and came across an article announcing the return of Food Truck Fridays. The article said today was the first day of the Fall Series.  I immediately knew I had to check it out. I actually tweeted my experience using the hashtag #FoodTruckFrenzy.

I’m a strong believer in food will only taste as good as the love and hard work you put into it. Now, I know that sounds quite cliché, but hear me out.

Remember those home cooked meals your mom and grandmother would make for you on a cold day, the holidays, when you were feeling under the weather or anytime really. Didn’t they taste delicious?

I’m not saying the food from the food trucks replaced my mom’s cooking, but it sure came pretty close.

 

The Atmosphere

The atmosphere was great. The food vendors were friendly and inviting. The weather was lovely as well, considering it was a bit humid outside.

Arlington residents standing by the food trucks

There were tables and chairs for foodies to sit and enjoy their meals under the shade or on the Levitt Pavilion stage.

There were five food trucks lined up out by Founders Plaza-Levitt Pavilion, where they had already attracted Arlington residents. ; Smoke Wagon, Whats Cook-N Chef, Holy Frijole, Gandolfos, Easy Slider and Maui Wowi.  

There was a variety of food to satisfy multiple taste buds. From tropical smoothies to Latin inspired meals to American burgers to Mexican food to New York style sandwiches, it made it quite difficult to not pick more than one.

You can either enjoy the lunch rush on Tuesdays, beginning today Sept. 16 from 11 am to 2 pm or the dinner portion on Fridays, beginning Sept. 19 from 5 pm to 10 pm at Stovall Park. The Food Truck Fall Series will continue up until Oct. 24 and will continue to be in the same locations. The lineup, however, will continue to change.

A Huarache from Holy Frijole

Arlington resident Nikki Delano said she read about the food truck kick-off online and was excited to try out the food.

“The atmosphere is laid back and enjoyable,” Delano said. “I had a huarache (Mexican masa 
tortilla with meat, lettuce, salsa, cheese and sometimes rice) from Holy Frijole and it was delicious.”

This event was refreshing. It gets you out of the house and out to socialize and have a great time.  I recommend at least attending one. The food was affordable and delicious. What more could you ask for, right?

Where to find them

To keep up with the latest news about the food trucks visit the Arlington Parks and Recreation Facebook page or the website for a complete lineup and schedule.

What food truck did you like best or caught your attention?

Delicious Go-To Smoothie

           The other day I was running late to class, as always, and this particular morning I was feeling incredibly hungry. I normally don’t sit down and eat because I never give myself the time to do so. Who does these days?  It’s always a quick stop to Starbucks and off to school I go. But that day, coffee was not going to cut it.

I opened the fridge and quickly scanned my options. Then it hit me. A smoothie! They’re easy to make and very versatile. You can basically throw any type of fruit and/or vegetable in the blender and you’re good to go. I knew I wanted bananas and peanut butter in it to make it filling, so that’s how this beauty was born.  

Here’s what you’ll need:

 (From left to right) Greek yogurt (plain), a banana, almond butter, honey, milk and ice.

           Put everything into the blender.

 

Now blend away.

            This is what it looks like after it’s blended.

 

Get your glass with ice. I used a mason jar to make it look fancy, but any cup will do.

 

Now pour it into the glass and enjoy the deliciousness!

 

Ingredients:

Makes one generous serving

Time: 5 minutes

• 1 Banana

• 2 tbsp of Greek yogurt (plain)

•  2 tbsp of Almond butter

• 1-1 ½ cups of Milk

• 2 drizzles of Honey

• A couple of ice cubes

 

Directions:

 

1.       Peel the banana, chop up into three pieces and put it into the blender.

2.      Add your Greek yogurt and almond butter.

3.      Pour the milk in and drizzle the honey on top.

4.      Blend until smooth.

5.      Pour into a glass with ice.

6.      Enjoy!

Suggestions:

•  You can either blend the ice cubes with the rest of the ingredients or add them to a glass and pour the smoothie over them. I usually pour mine into the glass over the ice since - my blender doesn’t do a great job about crushing ice.

 

• Another alternative could be to eliminate the ice completely and freeze the banana for a couple of hours. Just peel a couple of bananas, store them into a freezer bag and put them in the freezer. The bananas will last about two to three months unpeeled.

•  This process is not just limited to bananas. You could definitely do it with any fruit like strawberries, mango, blueberries, peaches, pineapple, raspberries, papaya, you name it.

•   If you chop them up and store them in a freezer bag, it will make easier to whip up a smoothie in the morning, rather than making a Starbucks run. And it would be much more delicious, too.  

 

What’s your favorite go to breakfast option when you’re in a hurry in the morning?