Avengers DIY

• Comic book notebook
• Avengers themed snacks
• Hidden surprise bath bombs
• Avengers inspired recipes
• Smoothie recipes
• Arc Reactor and Tesseract video

Comic book notebook

This is a great way to jazz up an old notebook economically!

What you'll need:

• comic book
• notebook
• modge podge
• paint brush
• damp sponge
• paper towel
• scissors

1. To make this project I used old comic books from Free Comic Book Day. First thing you will need to do is cut up pieces of the comic book pages into strips and then into smaller pieces. You can cut the pieces any size you like. I chose to keep the white outline on the page for my book, but you could cut it out.

2. Next, take some of the Modge Podge and put a thin layer on the notebook cover. Lay a piece of the comic book on top. Do this until the space is covered. I did the front cover in four sections so the glue didn't dry on me too quickly. Once you have the first layer of comic book pieces down, put another layer of Modge Podge on top. If you notice the pages starting to buckle that's okay because it will dry flat. If you put too much Modge Podge on, you can gently wipe it off with the damp sponge.

3. Repeat the steps from #2 for the back and spine of the notebook.

4. For fun, I went through the comic book and cut out individual speech bubbles and arranged them the way I liked on the notebook cover. Be as creative as you like with this project! This would also be an easy project to replicate if you wanted to make a cartoon belt or box.

5. Let the notebook cure overnight

6. Finished!

Avengers themed snacks

Hulk Guacamole

Recipe:

• 3 avocados
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• ½ lime juice
• ½ onion, diced
• 1 tsp garlic
• Black olives
• Cayenne pepper
• Salt and black pepper                                       

In a food processor, chop the onion and garlic finely. Next, add the avocado, olive oil and lime juice. Finally, mix in the salt and cayenne pepper to your liking.

Making Hulk:

Fill a glass jar or bowl with your dip and give your hulk a face with black olives! Dig in!

Layered Spider-man Dip

Recipe:

• ¼ cup Refried beans
• ¾ cup Sour cream
• ¼ cup Guacamole or 1 Wholly Guacamole Minis
• ¼ cup Chunky salsa
• ½ cup Shredded Mexican cheese
• Black olives

In a medium bowl, layer your dip starting with the refried beans following with guacamole, shredded cheese and salsa. Next, make your spider web face with the sour cream. You can put the sour cream in a piping bag or make your web with a knife. Finally, outline your Spiderman’s eyes with black olives and fill in the middle with sour cream.

Captain America chip platter

Recipe:

• Star-shape mold/cookie cutter
• Large plate
• Sour cream
• Blue chips
• Red chips
• White chips

On a large plate, begin by placing the star mold in the center and filling it up with sour cream. Next, add the black/blue chips around the star. Add the red chips around the blue ones. Finally add the white chips around the red ones. You now have a three coloured chip platter shield for your Hulk and Spider-man dips!

Hidden surprise bath bombs

Recipe

• 1 cup baking soda
• 1/2 cup citric acid
• 1/2 cup epsom salts
• 3/4 cup corn starch
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 tsp water
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 5-10 drops of food colouring
• 30 drops of your favourite essential

Things you'll need

• Large bowl
• small bowl(s)
• Eye dropper
• Small whisk
• Avengers action figure
• Silicone mold

Steps

1.Have all your supplies in one place. Your hands will get covered in the ingredients early on and you don't want to be reaching for things.

2. In a large bowl mix baking soda, citric acid, epsom salts, and corn starch with a small whisk. Make sure ingredients are blended well and that there aren't any lumps.

3. Mix the coconut oil, water, and vanilla extract in a small bowl. Using an eye dropper, add in essential oils.Then very slowly pour on to mixture in big bowl. The citric acid will be activated and start to fizz. That's normal.

4. I wanted to make different coloured bath bombs, so i split the mixture in the large bowl into three bowls. Add in food colouring. The ingredients will fizz a little bit which is normal. Then mix thoroughly with whisk.

5. The mixture needs to be the consistency of damp sand. If the mixture starts to feel too dry, spritz it with water sparingly. You don't want the mixture really wet!

6. Put the mixture into silicone molds. Push down as much as you can. If you want to layer your bath bomb with another colour, you can do so at this point.

7. If you are inserting a special surprise in the bathbomb, you might want to wrap it in syran wrap or in a small plastic baggie.

8. When the mold is half full of your mixture, put the figurine and then cover with more of the mixture. Make sure you press down the mixture so that it's securely in the mold.

9. As the bath bombs dry they will expand. You can push down the materials into the molds every so often. Let the bath bombs cure for 24 hours. Once the bath bombs are dry, carefully take them out of the molds. The bath bombs should be used within two weeks.

10. Fizzzzzzzzzzz you're done!

Avengers inspired recipes

Green Hulk soup

ADAPTED FROM: Gena Hamshaw

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 white or yellow onion chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic minced
• 2-3 tsp minced ginger to taste
• 2 medium yellow or Yukon gold potatoes peeled and roughly chopped (about 3/4-1 pound)
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
• 2 heaping cups broccoli stems or florets or chopped asparagus, chopped baby bok choy, or roughly chopped zucchini
• 4 cups tightly packed roughly chopped kale, Swiss chard, beet greens, or spinach
• 1 cup milk
• Black pepper to taste
• For serving: white beans cooked rice, cooked quinoa, toasted chickpeas, toasted pepitas, fresh herbs, etc.

Instructions

• Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the chopped onion. Sauté onion for 5 minutes until it's clear and soft. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for another minute, or until the garlic is very fragrant.
• Add the potatoes, salt, and broth to the pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer. Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork tender. Add the broccoli. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Stir in the kale or other leafy greens, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes, or until the kale is bright green and wilted.
• Transfer the soup to a blender in batches to puree thoroughly, adding water as needed if the soup is too thick (remember that you'll also add milk after blending). Return the soup to the pot and stir in the milk and black pepper to taste, as well as a pinch of salt if desired. Serve with toppings of choice.
• Soup will keep in an airtight container for up to three days and can be frozen for 2-3 weeks.

Purple Hawkeye soup

Ingredients

• 2 large purple sweet potatoes (can be replaced with size equivalent of purple potatoes or regular kind)
• 4 medium purple carrots
• 1 purple cauliflower, florets
• Salt & pepper
• 3–4 cups (180–240 ml) water (+ more as needed)
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) cream
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg, ground
• 1/4 tsp cloves, ground
• 3 tbsp extra-virgin oil
• 2 tbsp thyme, fresh

Instructions

1. Peel and chop purple sweet potatoes and carrots into about 1-inch chunks.
2. Place them in a large pot together with the cauliflower florets, a pinch of salt, and cover with 3 to 4 cups water.
3. Add to boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium and continue cooking until vegetables are fork tender.
4. Using a blender, mix the vegetables with the vegetable stock from the cooking.
5. Return the soup to the pot, add the cream, and season with ground black pepper, nutmeg and cloves. Cook for 5 more minutes, stirring well and adjusting the seasoning as needed. If the soup is too thick, add more water until desired consistency.
6. Drizzle some extra virgin olive on top, and garnish with fresh thyme.

Thor-themed “Golden Winter “soup

ADAPTED FROM: Barbara Kafka

Ingredients

• 2 tbsps butter
• 5 cups (1/2-inch) cubed peeled butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds)
• 2 cups (1/2-inch) cubed peeled russet potato (about 12 ounces)
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups sliced leek (about 2 medium)
• 4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 12 ounces baguette, cut into 16 slices
• 3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded Gruyère cheese
• 3 tbsp chopped chives
• Freshly ground black pepper (optional)

Instructions

• Preheat broiler.
• Melt butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
• Add squash, potato, salt, and pepper to pan; sauté 3 minutes.
• Add leek; sauté 1 minute. Stir in broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potato is tender, stirring occasionally.
• Place half of potato mixture in a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender.
• Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Pour into a large bowl.
• Repeat procedure with remaining potato mixture. Stir in half-and-half. Cover and keep warm.

Iron Man-themed “Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Tomato” Soup

ADAPTED FROM: Minimalist Baker

Ingredients

• 2 large red bell peppers (left whole)
• 1 28-ounce can crushed or peeled tomatoes in juices
• 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
• 1 cup water (sub up to half with extra milk for creamier soup)
• 1 14-ounce milk (use full fat for creamier soup)
• 1 1/2 tbsp dried dill (or sub 3 Tbsp (5 g) minced fresh dill per 1 1/2 Tbsp dried)
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp dried basil (or sub 2 tsp minced fresh basil per 1 tsp dried)
• 1/2 tsp each sea salt and black pepper
• 3-4 tbsp sugar
• 1 pinch red pepper flake (optional // for heat)

Instructions

• Roast red peppers in a 500 degree F (260 C) oven (on a foil-lined baking sheet) or over an open flame on a grill or gas stovetop until tender and charred on all sides - about 10-15 minutes in the oven, or 5 minutes over an open flame. Then wrap in foil to steam for a few minutes.
• In the meantime, add remaining soup ingredients to large pot and bring to a simmer. Then unwrap red peppers, let cool to the touch, and remove charred outer skin seeds and stems.
• Transfer to blender or use immersion blender to purée soup. Then transfer back to saucepan/pot and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat.
• Let simmer on low for at least 10 more minutes. The longer it simmers, the deeper the flavour develops.

Loki-themed “Blue Tesseract” soup

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp sesame, coconut, or grapeseed oil
• ½ yellow onion or fennel bulb
• 2 garlic cloves, minced (reduce or omit for pitta)
• 1 large head cauliflower, chopped
• 1-quart vegetable broth
• ¼ cup raw, unsalted cashews or ½ cup full-fat coconut milk
• 1 tsp blue spirulina
• ½ tsp sea salt, plus more to taste
• 2 tbsp hemp seeds, to garnish

Instructions

• In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and sauté for 3 minutes, until slightly brown.
• Add cauliflower, and sauté for another minute. Add vegetable broth and increase heat to bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until cauliflower is tender, 20–30 minutes.
• Remove soup from heat, and cool to a warm room temperature.
• Transfer soup to a blender with cashews, and blend on high until smooth and creamy, 1 minute.
• Lastly, add blue spirulina and blend briefly (excess heat from blending will diminish its nutritional value). Stir in salt to taste.

Black Widow-themed Black Bean Soup

ADAPTED FROM: Julie | The Simple Veganista

INGREDIENTS

• black beans, 1 lb. dried or 3 cans (15 oz.), rinsed and drained (see notes)
• 1 large white onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 medium carrots, chopped
• 1 medium red bell pepper, cored and chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 – 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 3 cups water or vegetable broth
• juice of one orange + orange halves
• salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

• Soak beans: The night before, rinse beans in colander with cold running water. Pick through and remove any broken or shriveled beans. Place beans in large pot with 5 or 6 cups water and cover to soak overnight.
• Pre-Cook Beans: Next day, drain beans and rinse again. Place beans back in pot, add water, bring to a boil and simmer covered for 1 hour, drain and rinse.
• Orange: Juice the orange and set the juice aside. Reserve the orange halves for the soup.
• Cook Soup: To the pot of freshly cooked beans, add the bay leaves, garlic, cumin, paprika, onion, celery, carrots, bell pepper, water/broth, orange halves, salt and pepper, reserving the orange juice for later. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 40 minutes to one hour, or until beans and vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Add extra water as necessary.
• Puree: Once beans are tender, remove the orange halves and bay leaves. Use an immersion blender to blend soup to desired consistency. You could also use a food processor/blender (this method may take two batches to complete). Blending is optional, you may like it chunky as is. Add the orange juice to the pureed soup and cook another 5-10 minutes.

The Superhero Shawarma

ADAPTED FROM: Fox and Briar

INGREDIENTS

• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 5 garlic cloves minced
• 2 lemons zested and juiced
• 1 1/2 tsp ground sumac
• 1/2 tsp Aleppo pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 2 tsps ground cumin
• 2 tsps paprika
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp kosher salt

To Serve:

• pita bread
• fresh herbs
• lemon wedges
• chopped salad

INSTRUCTIONS

• Preheat the oven to 400°F
• In a large bowl, combine the chicken thighs with the oil, garlic, lemon zest and juice, Aleppo pepper, allspice, cumin, paprika, turmeric, cinnamon and salt, stir to coat.  Cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the fridge for at least 20 minutes and up to an hour, the longer the better.
• Transfer chicken to foil lined baking sheet.  Pour the marinade over the chicken.  Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. For extra crispy edges, increase the heat to 425°F and continue cooking for 8 to 10 minutes.
• Remove chicken from oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before cutting into it. Then cut the chicken into slices.
• Serve with pita bread, tahini sauce or yogurt sauce, chopped salad, fresh herbs and lemon.

Smoothie recipes

Hulk:

• 1 cup coconut water/milk of choice
• 1 banana
• 1 handful of spinach
• Half a lemon’s juice
• Half chopped green apple
• Mint

Spiderman:

• 1 cup cranberry juice
• 1 banana
• 5-6 strawberries
• 7-8 raspberries
• 1 tbsp nut butter

Black Panther:

• 1 cup Cranberry juice
• 7-8 blackberries
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tbsp nut butter

Captain America:

• 1 cup coconut water/milk of choice
• ¼ cup yogurt
• 1 banana
• 5-6 strawberries
• ½ tsp blue spirulina powder

Arc Reactor and Tesseract video

Make your own Arc Reactor with this quick and easy video! You can also make a Tesseract really easily with this video.