Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Adventures in Baking #6: Happy World Nutella Day!

Happy World Nutella Day!


The only day I can feel justified in doing this...

I took this day not only to celebrate the complete awesomeness of Nutella, but also to use it as an excuse to make some yummy food.




Thought I'd share...



Nutella Pinwheels:

(dough recipe from Sunset Pies and Pastries)

Makes: About 3 dozen

Ingredients:

  • 1 c. (1/2 pound) unsalted butter
  • 1 package or 2-1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
  • 1/4 c. warm water (approximately 110° F)
  • 4 yolks (save the whites and make this)
  • 1/4 c. white granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
  • 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
  • 1 5 1/3 fl. oz. can evaporated milk (approximately 160 mL)
  • 3 1/3 c. all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1 c. Nutella
  • 2 tbsp. half and half

Method:

1.  Heat the butter in a small saucepan until completely melted; let cool to 110° F.

2.  In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water and mix to combine. Stir in 3 egg yolks, 1/4 c. white granulated sugar , salt, evaporated milk and cooled butter.

3.  In a large bowl, place 3 1/3 c. flour. Pour in the yeast mixture and stir to combine.

4.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 day and up to 3 days.

5.  Punch down dough, roll into a thickness of about 1/8". Cut into 3"x3" squares.

6.  Assemble:

I. Take a little square and place it on parchment.
II. Use your weapon of choice to cut the corners at a 45° angle (about [√18]/3 inches long, which is    about 1.5 inches for you less precise people)
III. Spoon on a dollop (1-2 tsp.) of Nutella into the middle.
IV. Fold.
V. Fold.
VI. Fold!
VIII. Repeat!

7. Let chill in the fridge for 10 minutes, then to rise in a warm area for 20 minutes.


8. Preheat oven to 375° F.


9. In a small bowl, combine the last egg yolk and the half and half. Whisk to mix.


10. Brush over the tops of the pastries and sprinkle them with sugar. With the tip of the handle of a spoon, punch in near the areas where the arms of the pinwheels meet, like this:





11. Bake for about 10 minutes, until golden brown.


12. Let cool, then enjoy with a mug of Nutella hot cocoa:




Nutella Hot Chocolate for One:

(recipe adapted from here)

Ingredients:

  • 1 c. (8 fl. oz.) Vanilla Soymilk (feel free to use milk. I didn't because the smell of warm milk grosses me out)
  • 1 generous spoonful (1 1/2 - 2 tbsp.) Nutella

Method:

1) Pour soymilk into a microwave-safe mug and microwave for about 1 minutes and 30 seconds to 2 minutes.
2) When the milk is steaming hot, take a spoonful of Nutella and stir it in.
3) Enjoy!




Have a wonderful Nutella Day!



Friday, February 1, 2013

February: Things to Make + to Do List

Hello, world! Happy February!
I've decided that for every month, I'm going to create a list of all of the things I want to get done during said month (along with stuff I want to make).
This month isn't really looking all that unique, except there's Groundhog Day, World Nutella Day and Valentine's Day. As sad as it sounds, I really only care about celebrating Nutella Day.

I want to get a ton of sewing done because I have some vintage dresses that need some work and I'm really excited to wear them, and I also have a cardigan, 2 pairs of shorts and a dress that need repairs and I can extend my wardrobe significantly if they're fixed.

I also have tons of DIYs I'm planning to post!



Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Resolutions

So I was going to post a lot earlier, but I was working feverishly at the end of break because I was stupid and saved all of my work/projects/etc. to do over the course of one day and ultimately ended up not sleeping and going into school late. And now I've developed a bad habit of falling asleep when I get home and staying up late to do my homework.

Insert one random picture here to make this post less boring...

But that's okay! It's totally going to end now. I had some resolutions planned, but I never actually started them. Let's just pretend that it's totally okay to begin them...starting NOW!

1. Stop procrastinating- Maybe then I'll have time to do fun things and sleep.
2. Exercise more- I need to lose some holiday poundage. :-(
3. Shop less- I got $150 for Christmas and now I have $70. I still have no idea what I bought.
4. Post more- I'm planning on posting at least a few times a week. I have tons of recipes, craft ideas and other fun stuff planned!
5. Paint my nails all the time- This sounds really shallow but I don't like my nail unpainted so I'm going to see if I can paint them all the time (and not chip it off).
6. Play video games again- Before I started sewing/knitting/baking/etc., video games used to be pretty much the only fun thing I did. I've found that I haven't been playing them much anymore... I don't remember the last time I played. And Hyrule probably needs some rescuing right about now.

My holidays were awesome, and I hope yours were, as well! :-)

Friday, November 2, 2012

I Love My Cat.

I've disappeared for a while, but with good reason...

I got a new cat! His name is Mr. Blue.


And even though he's tearing me to shreds, I love him so much because...


of that face,


he keeps me company when I do my homework,


he's oh so photogenic,


watching him play with yarn melts my heart,


he likes to squeeze into odd places,


and I wake up to something cute every morning.

Cats are wonderful. :-)

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Happy Valentine's Day!

I hope your Valentine's Day is full of

candy,

silly cards,


yummy junk food,


love letters


and spending time with the one you love! ;-)

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Lately.

Today I went to my first tea party...


And they had these fun little finger sandwiches! (I ate about six of these badboys!)


Then after that,


I baked cookies with my best friend's mom.


Finally, when I got home,


my mom took a picture of my sister, dog and me for our Christmas card!

Slowly, I'm getting more and more excited for the holidays! :-)

Sunday, November 6, 2011

November!

Even though I'm a little sad that it's November already (because of the cold!), I'm trying to be positive, so I made a list of the good things that November brings...

Like wearing cute coats,

Daylight savings time ending,

 NOT shaving (and it's only been a few days!),

(source: weheartit)
and my Papa's birthday (which means making a cute birthday cake!)

Monday, October 31, 2011

Happy Halloween!

It seems too early to be Halloween already...
 AND there is snow on the ground where I live (which I honestly find disturbing because winter makes me sad...).
 On the bright side, I get to drag out my Halloween sweater from under my bed (Yay for messy rooms!),
and carve pumpkins! (I'm in love with the way my pumpkin leaves star shapes all over the room!)

What are you doing for Halloween?