Sunday, March 25, 2012

Blondies

Today I made blondies for the first time! I followed this recipe from Bakerella http://www.bakerella.com/i-hope-you-have-chocolate-chips-handy/.

Blondie Description: It's like chocolate chip cookie meets brownie. They fall madly in love. They procreate. And blondie is born.

Blondies
2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter, softened (about 10-11 tablespoons)
1 lb. light brown sugar (2 1/4 cups)
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
11.5 ounce package milk chocolate chips
1 cup of M&Ms (optional)

By mixer:
Sift flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Set aside
Combine butter and sugar using a mixer until blended.
Add eggs, one at a time to sugar mixture, mixing on low in between each addition.
Add vanilla and mix.
Add flour and mix until combined.
Stir in chips.

By hand:
Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Set aside.
Stir brown sugar into softened (not melted) butter in another large bowl until butter disappears. You can use the back of your spoon to help incorporate the two together (or your good ol' hands).
Add eggs one at a time to butter mixture and stir well after each egg.
Add vanilla and chocolate chips. Mix well.
Add dry flour mixture and stir until well combined.

Coat a 13 x 9 pan with non-stick spray and spread batter evenly into dish (I lined my dish with foil and then sprayed pan with non-stick spray). Sprinkle with M&Ms on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until top is golden brown. Make sure you don't over bake.
*Note* - My baking time ran closer to 45 minutes.









Sunday, March 18, 2012

Brownies & Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

I must confess, I'm not one to make brownies from scratch. Ghirardelli Double Chocolate are my go to brownie mix.  They satisfy any craving....so why bother? Well, I came upon this Nutella brownie recipe and I couldn't resist. For the first time, I made brownies from scratch and it was a life changing experience. I don't think I will ever purchase a boxed brownie mix again (pinky promise)!

The baking didn't end there. I also made my first chocolate chip cookie cake for my sister's birthday. Our usual stop is Mrs. Fields, but this year I decided to take a stab at it on my own. I must say it turned out great and tasted even better than Mrs. Fields (not to toot my own horn;)! 

Recipe for Nutella brownie was courtesy of Ricardo from Food Network: http://www.ricardocuisine.com/recipes/3113-nutella-brownies-

Recipe for chocolate chip cookie cake was courtesy of Mr. Emeril Lagasse (BAM!): http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/giant-chocolate-chip-cookie-cake-recipe/index.html 











Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Feed Me Some Scones

I woke up this morning and all I could think about were scones. Chocolate Chip Scones. Fresh ones. Right out of the oven. The kind you bite into and the chocolate chunks just melt in your mouth. Yup. I made them. I fed my craving. And it was absolutely divine. I love dipping things in tea, so I did just that.

Recipe

I used a buttermilk pancake (all purpose baking) mix from Trader Joes. The recipe was on the side of the box, but I tweaked it to my liking.

* 3 3/4 cups Trader Joe's Baking Mix (Can be substituted for other brands)
* 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) salted butter
* 3 tbsp sugar ( I added 1/4 cup of sugar but if you like it sweeter I would try 1/2 cup)
* 1 cup cold milk ( I used low-fat milk)
* 1 tsp of vanilla extract
* 1 8oz. Milk Chocolate Bar

Preheat over to 400 Degrees F.

Add baking mix and sugar to a large bowl. Cut cold butter into the mix using a pastry knife (or your good ol' hands) until the lumps resemble coarse meal. Add the milk and stir together until moistened. Place dough on a floured work space and knead 5 times to form a ball. Form dough into an 8 inch circle, slightly domed in the center. Cut into 8 wedges. Place the wedges on a greased sheet pan, 1 inch apart. Sprinkle with table sugar. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Best served warm. Right out of the oven. So you can experience the melt in your mouth goodness. Oh and of course sprinkle some snow (confectioner's sugar) on top :)! Enjoy friends.



Sunday, March 11, 2012

Inspired By My Aquarian Sister

Hi Friends! This outfit was inspired by my lovely sister. I call her style hippy dippy boho gypsy. Haha. If she could wear a maxi skirt every day she would. Very very rarely will you catch my sister in a pair of flats. Mind you she is a giant (5'9). Anyways, hope you like this set! Have a great day:)!
Lace + Giuseppe Zanotti = Heaven


Lace top
$40 - witchery.com.au

Tailored blazer
$130 - topshop.com

J Brand slim jeans
£190 - liberty.co.uk

Giuseppe Zanotti wedge shoes
£259 - harrods.com

Satchel handbag
$60 - modcloth.com

Jigsaw hammered jewelry
£39 - jigsaw-online.com

H M antique jewelry
£3.49 - hm.com

Cashmere shawl
£117 - farfetch.com

Leopard belt
£18 - topshop.com

Ray-Ban clear sunglasses
$195 - mytheresa.com

Friday, March 9, 2012

My Sister

Here is an outfit I styled for my sister. Are those Zara heels fabulous or what?! Hope you like it:).









Dress: Zara
Necklace: Bebe (No longer for sale) 
Substitute Necklace: Anthropologie
Heels: Zara
Purse Option: Zara

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Camera Shy

I am completely, utterly, bloody camera shy. I don't like taking pictures. I don't know how to stand. Do I smile? Do I not. Where do I look? I feel cross eyed. Do I look cross eyed? Haha. Yes, this is the dilemma. Often, I have a funny facial expression, I look as white as Casper the friendly ghost, or I just look plain awkward.

Basically....in most photos you will find me like this......


Blazer (Gap) Similar one here ; Top (Forever 21) Similar one here ; Shorts (Zara) Similar one here ; Shoes (Sam Edelman) Similar one here or here ; Belt (J.Crew) Similar one here ; Scarf (J.Crew) Similar one here or here ; Bag (Zara) Similar one here or here ; Necklace (Forever 21) Similar one here ; Watch (Michael Kors) Similar one here or here.