Real, Not Ideal

We all have those days where we just NEED a cookie. For me, those days come more often than I'd like to admit. I've had this recipe from No. 2 Pencil saved for quite some time now on Pinterest,  and I finally decided to go for it. Ingredients - 1 tbsp. butter - 1 tbsp. sugar - 1 tbsp. brown sugar - 3 drops of vanilla extract - small pinch of Kosher salt - 1 egg yolk - slightly less than 1/4 cup of flour - 1 1/2 tbsp. of chocolate chips (moving from top left to right, up then down) 1. Melt the tablespoon of butter. I melted it for about 20 seconds. 2. Add the brown sugar. 3. Add the white sugar. 4. Add the vanilla. 5. Add the kosher salt. 6. Stir until all the ingredients are mixed. 7. Add the egg yolk. 8. Stir until all the ingredients are mixed. 9. Add the flour. 10. Stir until all the ingredients are mixed. 11. Add the chocolate chips and mix. 12. Microwave for 40-60 seconds. I cooked mine for 50 seconds. My rationalization is that cookies are h...

Yes, I am doing a Pinterest Challenge post on Saturday. I've decided to make a few changes for the summer months. I need some new hobbies for the summer, so I decided to use Pinterest and do something every week. I have a schedule written down for the kind of stuff I'm going to be completing. These posts will now take place on Saturdays with the exception of the last Saturday of the month when I will be doing my outfit posts. I intend to keep posting every Tuesday. I have a book review coming up as well as another product review, so this will be a good month! My sister has been loving smoothies lately, and I decided to take one on for breakfast! I was a little hesitant at the whole blueberry and lime thing, but it was actually REALLY good. It's zesty and refreshing. Perfect for the warmer weather I've been seeing here! I got the recipe from Julian the Thinker, and I changed the recipe a little bit. The blueberries I used were huge, and I needed to add more milk. I al...

It's been a while since I've done one of these! The last time I did the Pinterest Challenge was January,  but the last time I baked something for it was Brownie in a Mug.  I clearly love my brownies. Let me tell you, I have used this recipe from Life Tastes Good  many times. I have a friend who has some kind of potluck every few months, and I brought these the first time. The only reason her dad knows my name is because I was the one who brought the brownies. I've brought them for other occasions, and they have always been a hit. And once, I made these when I was bored and my sister's boyfriend and I sat at the kitchen table and ate half the pan while watching YouTube videos. Just a couple notes before we dabble into this: I was worried about the thickness of the batter and the addition of kosher salt, but trust me, I would not be giving this to you if it was a sub-par recipe. And second, the timing always seems to be different whenever I do it, so make sure you real...

So I may have cheated slightly on this one. And by cheating, I mean that I have combined two recipes to make one of my favourite combinations. The combination is completely optional for you. But anyway, last week, it snowed like crazy. The last time it snowed , it did not stick around. This time around, the weather decided to go all Elsa on us (I made a funny Tweet about it), and it was crazy. My sister had the day off school, and I came in looking like a snowman, so we cozy-ed up and made a nice warm drink. It was indulgent and felt so good! I have been eyeing the white hot chocolate recipe from Gimme Some Oven for quite some time now. However, I decided to spice things up (hehe). A few years ago, I was doing a Starbucks run, and someone suggested I try white hot chocolate with a chai tea bag in it. And I LOVED it! I'm not a huge tea drinker, but this was different. When we decided to make white hot chocolate, I remembered a recipe for a vanilla chai milkshake from Chocolate C...

Today has involved a lot of sleep, a long line, and working with no voice. This is that aftermath of O-week. I regret nothing. It was the most incredible week of my life, and I leave it feeling so fulfilled. However, my life is so disorganized right now. I'm surprised that I remembered to write a blog post (pay no mind to the fact that it is really down to the wire). I took these pictures knowing that I would want something easy to do when I got back from the week away. Excuse me for the awful editing on the number 8. I tried to fix it, but my brain is simply too tired and I ended up messing it all up. So you will just have to deal with this.     Ingredients: 1/2 cup mayonnaise 1/4 cup ketchup 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce Black pepper    Instructions: 1. Add 1/2 cup of mayonnaise. 2. Add 1/4 cup of ketchup. 3. Add 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder. 4. Stir all together. 5. Add 1/4 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce...

I'm just putting this out there right now. I have been up for two hours already. I had this image in my head where I would make myself a coffee and finish this post up. But no. We are out of coffee. All that is left is decaf, and that is just not going to cut it on a day like today. I am soooooo sleepy right now. But I will power through this. So I have another addition to my Pinterest challenge. I don't know about the rest of you who have tried this, but I also have at least five windows open while writing this. It takes effort! Anyway, this post is not exactly like the others. It is more inspired by Pinterest than anything else. The link led to an article on Squidoo  with ideas for Valentine's Day cupcakes. I don't know if you've noticed, but it is not February. So my friend and I decided to make a more summery cupcake. There isn't exactly a recipe for this either. So we'll just get into this. The Cupcake You don't even know how h...

Anyone who has actually been reading this blog knows that I have been obsessed with  Pinterest . As it is summer, I no longer scroll through Pinterest on an hourly basis, but that does not mean that I have not been using it to my advantage! I found this pin for a  brownie in a mug , and it was only three ingredients, so I was intrigued. I made it almost instantly (Pinterest tells me I pinned it 14 weeks ago at this point), and since then, I have been making over and over to the point where I have the recipe memorized (thank goodness, because my computer does not want to let me get on the site). If chocolate is your thing, then write this recipe down. You will never go back when making an entire batch of brownies is simply too long a process. It is certainly moist and gooey and heavenly. Ingredients: - 1/4 cup icing sugar - 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder - 1 egg Instructions: 1. Use a regular sized mug. Please excuse my Christmas mug, but it is the only s...

I know it has been a while. To be honest, I didn’t realize how long it has been until I sat down to write this. I’m not going to sit here and give you my excuses and explanations. All I can say is that I took the time to figure out where I want this blog, and the rest of my life, to be. So now I am ready to commit and I cannot be more excited! To start off, another addition to my Pinterest challenge. Instead of the typical pin and put aside activity, I have been challenged by my friend Marlee to actually do some of these totally ingenious things! It has been a blast so far, and I know I have done only foodie things (check out my board here ), but I just cleaned out my wardrobe, and I have Pinterest plans for some of my old stuff. Trust me, you will be looking forward to Fridays now! Also, I learned how to make collages for my pictures. Technology . . . who knew? Aaaaaand, thanks to Marlee once again, all my pictures will be Pin-able from this day forward. I made this smoothie o...

I was doing my lovely rounds on Pinterest for my Pinterest Challenge and I found this recipe for Brownie Oatmeal from Dashing Dish . I mean, it had me at Brownie. I have a lot more chocolate products on my food board  if you're interested. As I mentioned on my Very Inspiring Blog Award , I love breakfast, so I made this power oatmeal for the morning before an exam.  I did end up changing the recipe to suit my own tastes, and it’s pretty easy to make. Brownie Oatmeal Ingredients ·          1 cup of coconut milk ·          ½ cup of Greek yogurt ·          2 tbsp cocoa powder ·          1/8 tsp salt ·          2 tbsp honey ·          1 ¼ cup oatmeal Instructions Add the coconut milk. ...

It is exam time! This means I have a lot more time to myself, and that means I have been spending a lot more time procrastinating. New obsession? Pinterest. My good friend Marlee from Marlee and You has challenged me to a Pinterest challenge. Instead of simply doing three things a month, I will do one thing a week. It can vary from recipes like I have done this week, or decorations for my bedroom. This will replace my outfit posts since I will not have enough outfits a week to create a sufficient blog post. Now, I found this recipe last night on Pinterest , but it is originally from Daydream Recipe . I loved it. I love blueberries. And I love food. I feel like everyone has a food board, but you can follow mine here . Anyway, this recipe was really simple to make. The original recipe calls for a cinnamon spread, but I didn’t have one so I made my own (my mom was proud). Blueberry Quesadilla Ingredients For the Cream Cheese Spread: ·      ...