Dorm Delectable- An Apple a Day Blog Event!

I know I've mentioned that i can be a health nut sometimes, but I' m not sure I've let slip one of my other quirks associated with food; I'm mildly obsessed with apples. Okay, okay- really obsessed with Granny Smith apples, and fairly obsessed with all other types. So I was super psyched when I found this "Apple a Day" blog event hosted by Rossella at http://machetiseimangiato.wordpress.com. It's a pretty cute Italian food site, but unfortunately I'm from the U.S., and therefore speak one language, and one language only.

Anyways, I've created an entry for this event. Yay! It's simple and dorm-able, like always, since that's pretty much what I'm confined to right now. But I go home in a couple weeks...so there might be some pink peppercorn cupcakes, cocoa eggplant or cauliflower couscous in my future...

This dish turned out pretty well. It's kind of what started my current love of cooking grains with a tea bag; it can add such an interesting flavor! But I'll post about that later.

"Awake" Apple Barley
1/4 cup uncooked barley
1 apple (I used Fuji; but any kind will do)
1 black tea bag (I used "Awake" from Starbucks)
Pinch of cinnamon
Milk, just in case the barley ends up too dry

Place barley in microwave-safe bowl with 1/2 cup of water; also place tea bag in water. Once water is around half-way soaked up by the barley, remove the tea bag; it should've provided some good flavor by now. Continue microwaving until barley has soaked up all water.

Chop apple into bite-sized pieces; add to cooked barley along with cinnamon to taste. If barley is dry- or too hot to eat, and you need to get to class!- then add a little bit of milk.