Apple nachos for healthy midterm snacking

Are you looking for a healthy dessert with a sweet twist? If you think you’ve run out of different ideas on how to snack on America’s favorite fruit, look no further: apple nachos are perfect to bring to a gathering or to just snack on while bingeing your favorite Netflix show.

Apple Nachos

Ingredients:

30 large marshmallows

5 tablespoons butter

35 caramel candies

1 tablespoon water

5 apples 

Toppings (chocolate chips, sprinkles, candy, peanuts, etc.)

Directions:

1.    Slice the apples and arrange them on a large plate.

2.    Melt the marshmallows and the butter in a pan on a low heat setting.

3.    Combine the caramels and water in a bowl and microwave until melted

Check every 45 seconds or so to see if it’s completely melted.

4.    Drizzle the marshmallow and caramel sauces on top of the apples.

5.    Add any amounts of the toppings of your choice.

6.    Serve immediately!

Enjoy!

Tie-dye event educates on fair trade

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Hippies for Hope and Geneseo Late Knight hosted a tie-dying event to promote fair trade practices. Profits from the event were donated to local children’s hospitals. (Ash Dean/Staff Photographer)

Students filled the MacVittie College Union on the evening of Friday Feb. 3 for Hippies for Hope and Geneseo Late Knight’s “Tying It All Together” event. 

Hippies for Hope is a charitable organization on campus that works to further the education of students in El Castillo, Nicaragua through creating and selling homemade tie-dye shirts. All profits from the shirt sales—in addition to any of the leftover shirts that weren’t sold—are donated to local children’s hospitals like Golisano Children’s Hospital at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester. 

The event was held to spread awareness about fair trade and to show Geneseo students the type of work Hippies for Hope accomplishes. As the students arrived, upbeat music played; all the while, bright colors spread across the room, creating a relaxing atmosphere for all attendees. 

The first 100 students received a free pillowcase that they could tie-dye during the event. Other students brought their own articles of clothing to tie-dye like socks and shirts. Although Hippies for Hope usually donates the tie-dyed shirts at their normal meetings, the students kept their creations from this special event.

First, there was a table where attendees tied rubber bands around their pillowcases and shirts to create a variety of different patterns including the spiral and twist techniques. Then, students soaked their shirts in a variety of vibrantly colored dyes, including green, blue and purple. 

Geneseo Late Knight employee and international relations major junior Uma Natarajan spoke about fair trade practices.

“Fair trade is when workers work under good working conditions and are paid well for the labor they do,” Natarajan said. “Laborers that farm crops are often not paid well. The food being served tonight is fair trade.” 

Students enjoyed a fresh, colorful fruit salad, consisting of melons with strawberry yogurt, bananas and refreshments.

Geneseo Late Knight staff members encouraged students to tweet pictures of their tie-dye creations. The students who tweeted the best creations received a variety of prizes from GLK.

Vice president of Hippies for Hope and biology and adolescent education double major senior Megan Farrell commented on the overall success of the night.

“We had fun tie dying with the campus community while making fun memories,” she said. “Hippies for Hope works for a great cause, and hopefully this event piqued people’s interest in joining the club.”

Overall, the event was an evening full of creativity and fun for all students involved. Everyone enjoyed treats made through ethical practices as well as their tie-dyed apparel, all the while learning exactly what Hippies for Hope does for the local and global community.

“It’s really cool how Geneseo Late Knight offers free events to students while at the same time spreading awareness about the need of fair trade in modern society,” English and geography double major freshman Christina Morrow said.

Snowmen cookies to “sleigh” the season

These adorable snowman cookies make the perfect dessert to top off any holiday meal! Melted Snowman Cookies

Ingredients for icing:

4 egg whites

8 cups confectioners sugar or as needed

1/4 cup lemon juice or as needed

Ingredients for decorations:

24 sugar cookies

24 large marshmallows

75 silver nonpareils

1 tube black decorating gel

1 tube orange decorating gel

1 tube red decorating gel

Directions:

1. Beat egg whites lightly in a large bowl. Slowly beat confectioners sugar into egg whites until the icing will

hold shape. Blend in lemon juice until desired consistency.

2. Arrange cookies about one inch apart on a large sheet of waxed paper. Spread icing onto each cookie, allow

ing icing to drip over edges to look like melting snow.

3. Grease a microwave-safe plate. Place one marshmallow onto plate. Microwave marshmallow until it starts to

puff up for around 30 seconds. Immediately place marshmallow on the edge of one cookie while the icing is still

wet to look like a melted snowman. Repeat.

4. Decorate by piping “twig-like arms” using black decorating gel. Then make “coal eyes” and a “mouth” on the

marshmallow. Make a “carrot nose” under the eyes using orange decorating gel. Make “coat buttons” by arrang

ing silver nonpareils down the middle of the icing. Make “scarves” using red decorating gel.

5. Allow cookies to fully dry before removing from waxed paper.

Enjoy!

Pecan pie to perfect any plate

Pecan pie is the perfect dessert to top off any meal during the holiday season. Its nutty, sugary flavor is a classic favorite. Pecan pie is often served with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream to enhance the taste. This recipe yields 8-10 servings. Pecan Pie

Ingredients:

1 cup Karo® Light or Dark Corn Syrup

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon Spice Islands® Pure Vanilla Extract

1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) pecans

1 9-inch unbaked or frozen deep-dish pie crust

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Mix corn syrup, eggs, sugar, butter and vanilla using a spoon. Stir in

pecans.

3. Pour filling into pie crust.

4. Bake on center rack of oven for 60-70 minutes.

5. Cool for 2 hours on wire rack before serving.

6. To use prepared frozen pie crust: Place cookie sheet in oven and preheat

oven as directed. Pour filling into frozen crust and bake on preheated cookie

sheet.

Enjoy!

Shakti hosts Diwali dinner celebration

Geneseo students and locals filled the Geneseo Interfaith Center on Franklin Street on Saturday Nov. 12 for the annual Diwali dinner, hosted by Geneseo Shakti. Shakti translates to empowerment in Hindu. Every fall in the northern hemisphere, the Hindu festival of lights and happiness, called Diwali, is celebrated. Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and some Buddhists celebrate the holiday for a total of five days, termed Dhanteras, Naraka Chaturdasi, Lakshmi Puja, Padwa, Balipratipada and Bhai Duj, Bhaiya Dooji.

Diwali usually falls sometime between mid-October and November, depending on the lunar calendar. Each year, however, it falls on the darkest night at the end of the Hindu lunar month.

Bright lights decorated the Interfaith Center for the Diwali Dinner; candles, beautiful pink-flowered centerpieces and little pieces of chocolate were placed on each table in spirit of the holiday. Guests received mandalas—a pattern that symbolizes the universe in Indian culture—to color with crayons. Club members wore traditional Indian garb, like Sarees.

To kick off the night, Geneseo Shakti e-board members gave a presentation about the holiday in order to inform guests about the traditions and the meaning behind the festival of lights.

“The dinner required weeks of planning,” co-president of Shakti business administration major senior Supriya Juneja said. “It took a couple of hours to set up, a few hours to get the food and even more time to get everything ready for the night.”

To celebrate Diwali, families decorate their homes with lots of colorful lights, lamps and candles. Oftentimes, fireworks are displayed. The lights signify god and ward off darkness and evil. Additionally, families gather to have large feasts, to exchange gifts and to pray and worship god together.

The presentation ended with a clip from the TV show “The Office,” where character Michael Scott sings about Diwali to the tune of Adam Sandler’s Hanukkah song. The clip lightened the atmosphere for the guests, all while fulfilling the spirit of Diwali.

A delicious dinner followed the introduction. The food aromas filled the air as guests waited in line for a plate of Indian cuisine. The cuisine consisted of Saag Paneer—otherwise known as spinach—Naan—bread—Kheer—otherwise known as rice pudding—spring rolls and more.

“The food was really delicious,” philosophy major senior Jessica Heppler said. “It was great they were able to get it catered from Rochester.”

After dinner, a few Shakti members performed a dance. “The performance was done by three of our seniors, all previous e-board members and Shakti members,” Juneja said. “They did a couple of dances to Bollywood songs.”

Dances are commonly performed to Bollywood music in India and other Hindu cultures. Guests enjoyed the energetic, impressive dance numbers performed by the seniors after the dinner.

Overall, the room buzzed with conversation and laughter throughout the entire evening. Everyone who attended took advantage of this great opportunity to eat the delicious food, to watch lively performances and to learn about how Diwali is traditionally celebrated.

Mass Incarceration Seminar opens dialogue through debate simulation

Twelve students held the Mass Incarceration Seminar in Newton Hall on Sunday Nov. 6. The Model United Nations editorial board and representatives from the mass incarceration class hosted the debate. Biology major junior Sara Feinland, economics and English double major junior Brendan Mahoney, history major sophomore Jeanmarie Ryan and history and international relations double major sophomore Malachy Dempsey organized the simulation for their class project.

Although Model UN has held similar events, they have never held a mass incarceration simulation. For this event, they collaborated with the students working on their class project. The seminar discussed the topic of the crack cocaine crisis in the 1980s during Ronald Regan’s presidency.

“The War on Drugs is something that affects our society,” Dempsey said. “For our class, we had to do an activist project, so we wanted to examine the foundation of the War on Drugs because that’s the best way to try and fix the situation.”

Each participant researched a public figure and spoke on what that specific figures’ views on the cocaine crisis would have been. Students took their position on the topic as if they were public figures like Jesse Jackson, Governor Cuomo and other political representatives.

The committee of politicians debated whether victims of the crisis should be sent to jail, punished or helped with their drug addictions and then sent back into society. Members also discussed the media’s influence on the crack crisis, its relationship to crime rates, funding, racial minorities, activist changes, other drugs and much more.

The debate was run using parliamentary procedure. Students raised a placard with their figure’s name on it to vote on issues or whenever they wanted to speak. This process ensured that the debate ran smoothly and professionally.

“It was really interesting to be in the middle of all the craziness of the 80s,” Model UN member international relations major freshman Julia Borkowski said. “You look back at history and you don’t really understand how it all worked and how everybody agreed on these dramatic measures, and yet when you are in this committee, it starts to make sense. When you are forced to vote on things that fund your programs, it makes sense why things went down the way they did.”

Overall, the students who participated in the debate had a great experience and actively participated in the discussion. Students enjoyed cupcakes and candy while deliberating with the entire group. Everyone in the committee eagerly voiced their opinions and readily listened to what everyone else had to say about the topic for a successful case.

This seminar certainly left attendees and participants with a better understanding of the War on Drugs that continues to plague our country.

Japan Knight educates on culture through traditional cuisine, performance

Students, faculty and public attendees filled the MacVittie College Union Ballroom on Saturday Oct. 29 for the annual Japan Knight. The Japanese Culture Club hosted this event with the support of Student Association, Alliance for Community Enrichment, Campus Auxiliary Services and advisor and professor of chemistry Kazushige Yokoyama. Tickets sold for $6 to $8 and included a Japanese meal in addition to an evening full of entertainment.

The night began with over 100 people filing into the ballroom dressed in their best Halloween costumes in the spirit of Halloween weekend. A full menu of Japanese cuisine was served, including delicious white rice, miso soup, karaage—which is fried chicken—Japanese croquettes, string beans with sesame and coffee jelly to top it off for dessert. The tables were nicely decorated in red and the room buzzed with conversation and laughter.

After dinner was served, students in the Japanese Cultural Club performed various music and dance routines. There was a modern dance, traditional dance, Gashadokuro—otherwise known as a skeleton dance—and perfect human dance that the audience clearly enjoyed.

“I was part of the skeleton dance and modern dance ‘Fever,’” early childhood education major freshman Arisa Tanai said. “[Psychology major sophomore] Chika Gayton and [communication major senior] Leah Collazo put in so much of their time and energy into the routine. I’m glad it turned out so well.”

In addition to the music and dance performances, there was also a student directed skit and fashion show. The club’s vice president and English major senior Giovanni Madonna wrote the play about a student named Shirma—played by English major sophomore Aidan Koch—who had to complete a summer assignment with a girl named Rei, played by international relations major freshman Maryn Chielewski. Throughout the summer, they begin to have feelings for each other.

Members of the 50-person Japanese Culture Club performed other characters in the play. Attendees laughed throughout the two-part skit and gave a huge round of applause at the end. Members spent over two hours every weekend practicing their performances and planning for the event over the past month and a half.

“What I enjoyed most were the weekly rehearsals,” Tanai said. “We laughed about how the dances were too sexy for us or ‘how to do a body roll 101.’ I felt like I was able to bond with great people and I’m glad to have been a part of Japan Knight 2016.”

Overall, the night was full of delicious Japanese cuisine and entertainment. Whether performing or just organizing, all the club members worked well in pulling together a successful and fun event for all who were involved.

Annual Wing Fest provides delicious treats, autumn entertainment

Main Street and Center Street filled with chicken wing lovers at the third annual Genesee Valley Autumn Wing Fest on Saturday Sept. 24. Since this past weekend was also Parent’s Weekend, families from all over attended. The weekend showcased beautiful weather while also providing participants with a great way to kick off the first few days of fall.

All proceeds from the event went to the Association for Preservation of Geneseo—most specifically toward the restoration of The Wall in Geneseo. The Wall is a historical landmark and gateway into the Village of Geneseo. Stones have fallen out, however, and the wall has been crumbling for decades. Over the past few years, the “Save The Wall” project has been in full swing. Members of APOG collect donations and volunteer to oversee restoration.

At the Wing Fest, attendees purchased tickets for $15, which allowed them to sample wings from eight different eateries in Livingston County. This included The Village Tavern, The Beachcomber, Livingston Lanes and Pub, Mt. Morris Lanes & Pro Shop, 3-Legged Pig BBQ, Duffy’s Tavern, The Nines at Livingston and The Riviera. From extra hot to garlic parmesan to chili, the wings came in all flavors—it was sure to satisfy anyone’s tastebuds.

Families and friends flocked from tent to tent evaluating all the obscure, crispy, fresh and local chicken wings. The different restaurants set up tents to serve attendees wings or drumsticks. Guests also had the opportunity to speak to the employees of the restaurants.

“Wing Fest is such a fun event—plus the proceeds are going to a good cause,” general manager and catering manager of Beachcomber restaurant Mary Alice May said. “It’s really great to meet locals, Geneseo students and their parents.”

In addition to wings, the event also included live music, face painting, ice cream, food trucks, a wing eating contest, the opportunity to get a photo with a chicken mascot and other enjoyable performances.

“In my opinion, The Village Tavern wings were the best. They put a different twist on their wings. It wasn’t your ordinary chicken wing,” geology major freshman Miranda Felong said. “It was a fun event, especially for Parent’s Weekend. With all the live entertainment, I will definitely come back next year.”

After trying wings from all eight stations, people voted on their overall favorite chicken wing. At the end of the festival, The Village Tavern won the title of Best Wing in the Valley for the third year in a row.

All in all, Wing Fest created a festive way to kick off the autumn season and to enjoy food with one’s family and friends.