Tag: baking

Friday Things

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Hey there! Happy Friday! This week has flown by- can you believe it’s already mid-March? And St. Patrick’s Day, at that! Is anyone doing anything to celebrate? I don’t think I am, but I’m OK with that- I’ve had plenty of years where I’ve had St. Patty’s day celebrations so a quiet one this year doesn’t bother me.

It’s been a hot minute since I’ve popped in with a Friday post! And, to be honest, I’m not sure if I’ll continue with my “Five on Friday” series. It’s been fun, but these days I feel as though I’m struggling to find 5 share-worthy things with you, so what’s the point in that? Instead, I’d rather just share things of interest and relevance when they occur- sound good?

  • As Close to Us As Breathing- This was another book club book for one of my book clubs and I really enjoyed it! It was about a Jewish family in the mid 1900’s and it was interesting to see just how different things where back then and how badly different ethnic groups did not get along. It’s also interesting to see the family dynamic of the main character’s family.

  • Share your stuff!- After class last Saturday, two people tagged me in their after-class meal pictures and it was so fun to see how they refuel. I always re-post in my Instagram stories, so if you want to be included, be sure to tag me!

  • Snow Day Baking- While we were home together on Tuesday, RM and I both felt like cookies. We didn’t have the traditional cookie ingredients in the house so I googled “Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies” and this recipe popped up first. Luckily I had all of the ingredients so I whipped them up and we were both so happy with how they came out! They’re definitely “healthy” cookies, but they satisfied our cookie craving, too!

  • Sweat, Shop, Snack at New Balance– Don’t forget, in 2 weeks I’m hosting a fitness event at the New Balance flagship store in Brighton. At 6:30 we will start a cardio kickboxing class and then after that you’ll have a chance to shop around (with a 20% discount) and snack on Larabars, sip on Purity Organics and more. Grab a girlfriend (or boyfriend!) and get your spot now– you don’t want to miss this!

I think that does it for me! I’ll be at the Y tomorrow morning for kickboxing if anyone wants to join in on the fun 🙂 10am!

Questions for you: Have you read any good books lately? Have you done any good baking lately? What are your plans for this weekend? 

Oatmeal Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Cookies

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I made some delicious cookies for the Super Bowl Party I went to a few weeks ago. Cookies? For the Super Bowl? Yeah, I got a few questions on that, but when I found out someone else was making a Buffalo Dip, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to make a dessert instead of a dip. So, I whipped up some oatmeal cookies with cinnamon chips and chocolate chips- and was happy with my decision. Oats+ Cinnamon + Chocolate is a really great combination if you ask me. It’s probably even worthy to make for your Valentine 😉

I’ve had this recipe for ages and I’m not sure where I got it, but I added/changed some things so I’ll just leave you with the recipe that I came up with after my alterations.

Oatmeal Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

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  • 1 3/4 cups oats
  • 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1.5 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 stick of butter, softened
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3/4 cup cinnamon chips
  • 3/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375*.Combine the dry ingredients (oats through the sea salt) in one bowl.

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2. Cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add in the egg and vanilla and mix well.

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3. Combine wet and dry ingredients and add in the cinnamon and chocolate chips.

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4. Make tablespoon size balls and place them on a cookie sheet. Bake for 6-8 minutes (or until cooked to your desire). Remove cookies and let cool… or eat one while they’re still warm 😉

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These cookies were a big hit… luckily, I saved a few for myself so I could have some to enjoy throughout the week 😉

Questions for you: What’s your favorite kind of cookie? What’s your “go-to” dish that you bring to a party?

Weekend Catch-Up: Sister time, shopping, partying, relaxing

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I think we can all agree that December is a crazy busy month, right?! This past weekend was no different, but it was nice because I was able to relax on Sunday and catch up on blogging, baking cookies, doing laundry, writing Christmas cards, etc. Even though I am not always good at this, it is so important to make some time for yourself to do whatever it is that makes you happy and makes you escape from the craziness of the holiday season.

Friday

I had to go to the office to pack up my stuff for the move, but it wasn’t so bad because I treated myself to lunch at Flour Bakery. JP and I always used to get lunch out on Thursdays when we worked together, but since he left, I’ve been bringing my lunch almost every day (which is good for the waist and the wallet).

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After work, I came home and dealt with organizing the Pampered Chef stuff before picking up my sister at the airport and heading to Ecco for drinks and then walking across the street to Santarpio’s for dinner. Danielle had never eaten there so I was so excited to bring her!

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Saturday

I started my day the best way: teaching kickboxing at the Y. From there, I went to Target to get all sorts of random stuff. This was apparently the week of treating myself to indulgences because I got a Skinny Chai Tea Latte from Starbucks, which I NEVER do anymore. It was so, so good.

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After Target, I went into the city and was done shopping within 30 minutes. I know. I was impressed, too.

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My friends Jessi and Cristina had their annual Christmas party at their apartment in Charlestown, so Danielle and I braved the storm and headed there. It was so good to catch up with everyone, but getting a cab home in the snow storm? Notsomuch. I started calling cabs at 11:45 and didn’t get one until after 1am. Yuck! Otherwise, it was a really fun night!

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Sunday

I started my day with breakfast, blogging, laundry and baking some adorable snowmen cookies!

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It was so nice being around and having a chance to relax on Sunday morning. I don’t do that nearly enough! After I worked out and had lunch, I headed to TJ Max and Market Basket and then spent the rest of my Sunday puttering around my apartment, getting Christmas gifts together, doing a little more baking, prepping my lunches for the week, etc. I made a super simple dinner since I won’t be around on Tuesday and Wednesday for dinner. Market Basket rotisserie chickens are the best. thing. ever!

Questions for you: Did the weather ruin any plans for you this weekend? Is your Christmas shopping done? When’s the last time you had a jello shot?

A busy weekend in the kitchen!

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Hey there! I find that when I’m around on the weekend with some extra time, I tend to spend it in the kitchen. I wouldn’t say that I’m a great cook or baker, but I love doing both and have turned out some pretty delicious meals and baked goods, so I think that’s enough to keep me happy and motivated to keep trying new things.

This past weekend, I had a blast baking festive treats and a Mexican dinner that was super quick and easy to put together. I think it’s probably the cooler fall weather that makes it so comforting to be in the kitchen with the stove going. Whatever it is, I’ll take it, because I love having fun treats in the apartment!

First up, Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread. Sunday morning I woke up and decided I wanted to bake pumpkin bread. I went online and did a quick Google search for “healthy pumpkin bread” and stumbled upon a bunch of delicious looking Cooking Light pumpkin bread recipes. I decided to try the Pecan-Topped Pumpkin Bread, substituting the pecans for chocolate chips. MMMM. A pumpkin bread smelling apartment is a great way to start the day;)

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Next up, apple crisp. I told Jessi that I would bring apple crisp to her dinner party since I had a bunch of apples from Saturday’s apple picking. I found a great looking Martha Stewart apple crisp recipe and decided to use it! I can’t say I really like to peel apples, but, there was something very soothing and relaxing about peeling and chopping on Sunday, which made for a much more enjoyable process. Could’ve been the glass of wine I was drinking while I peeled and chopped 😉

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If I thought the smell of pumpkin bread was delicious, the smell of apple crisp was unbelievable! I absolutely love all apple desserts, but apple crisp is probably my favorite. I made a few different size dishes so I could keep some, and share more.

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Lastly, I made a taco salad for dinner! I didn’t want to make anything big this week since I wouldn’t be around on Tuesday and Thursday through Sunday, so using up some frozen chicken and leftover veggies, adding in beans and taco seasoning was the perfect quick and easy dinner!

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I had been craving Mexican for a while, so this totally hit the spot. The only thing missing was cheese. I bought Mexican cheese and everything… can’t believe I forgot to add it 😦 Oh well. Once I slathered everything in salsa I couldn’t even tell the difference 😉

Questions for you: What’s your favorite apple recipe? What’s your favorite quick bread recipe? What’s the best thing you ate last weekend?

Avocado Banana Bread

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Say, what?! Avocado banana bread? You’re probably thinking that cannot be true, or, if it is, it must not be very good, right? Well, it is true, my friends, and it is a delicious combination.

I came across this recipe years ago over at Live, Laugh, Eat and it has been my “go-to” banana bread recipe ever since. The avocado is a healthy way to help keep the bread moist (ew, I hate that word) and the beauty with this recipe is you can’t really taste the avocado. The banana flavor absolutely trumps the avocado, so don’t worry, you’ll still feel like you’re eating banana bread.

The cooler early morning temps over the weekend, paired with overly ripe bananas & a very ripe avocado, made for a perfect excuse to dust off my baking pans and spend my Sunday morning baking. I tried to follow the recipe, but you’ll see below that I did make some changes.

Avocado Banana Bread

recipe from Live, Laugh, Eat, but slightly adapted by myself

Ingredients:

I halved the recipe… just an FYI

  • 2 med-large bananas
  • 1 med-large avocado
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 TBSP coconut oil -I didn’t have coconut oil so I used milk (I must have googled that substitution somewhere)
  • 1 tsp lemon juice – Again, I skipped this and am assuming it’s because I added milk? The recipe is old!
  • 1/2 cup skim milk
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 2 1/4 cups of whole grain flour (I used 1/2 c whole wheat, 1 c oat, 3/4 c spelt)– I used regular ol’ white flour
  • 1/3 cup ground flax seed (I ran out so I didn’t include this)
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips

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Directions:

Preheat oven to 350* F

1. Mash the banana and avocado. Add in the rest of the ingredients up until the flour, and including the vanilla.

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2. Slowly fold in the flour & cinnamon.

3. Add in the chocolate chips.

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4. Grease a loaf pan and bake at 350* for about 35-40 minutes.

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5. Cut a nice slice, add some butter, and enjoy while it’s still warm!

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This was the perfect Sunday morning treat! I haven’t baked since I cut back on sweets and since it was summer and too hot to bake, I didn’t really miss it… that is, up until I started baking on Sunday morning and realized how much I enjoy it!

Questions for you: What word grosses you out the most? Do you like to bake? Do you make a lot of substitutions when you bake?