This and That: 2014

Saturday, December 20, 2014

2014 Bucket List

Hello lovelies!

Okay so instead of making ridiculous New Years Resolutions that are stereotypical and nearly impossible to keep (I'm looking at you loosing weight and being happy), I made a bucket list of things I wanted to accomplish in 2014 instead. Since the year's almost over, I think it's time to look at how many I've accomplished, can cram in, and need to roll over (though I'm not keen on the idea at all).

Okay so here's the list:

~~Complete c25k program~~
~~Go to the gym for 10 consecutive weeks~~
~~Save up for something~~
~~Buy it~~
~~Save up for something else~~
~~Apply for 1 job x day x 2 weeks~~
~~Do something new (tbd)~~
~~Make a video about it~~
~~Don't drink for a month~~
Finish the Look Book
~~Finish Blogmas~~
Go ice skating
~~Explore more places, near or far~~
~~Leave the country~~
~~Go on a road trip~~
~~Go on vacation~~
Get down to x lbs and stay there
~~Do something elaborate for a while~~
Go out of your way to do something nice for someone
~~Make a new friend~~
~~Try new food~~
Write a story

1. Complete c25k program

I downloaded an app on my phone to train myself from laying on the couch to running a 5k (hence c25k). It was NOT my idea to start this and I don't think I ever would come up with that idea if my friend Laura didn't kinda challenge me into it (I'm actually rather competitive).

2. Go to the gym for 10 consecutive weeks

I'm super rubbish at keeping motivated so this helped me a bit (not much as some of the weeks overlapped with the c25k gym time which was not my original intention) Now my gym activity is sporadic at best unfortunately.

3. Save up for something

I saved up my tips for the better part of 2 months to get my canon t3i camera and camera bag xx

4. Buy it

And obviously I bought it haha

5. Save up for something else

I still have vacation funds that I am building (because I was bad and used my "bill paying" account to pay for the trip took this year), so I guess that counts as saving for something.

6. Apply for 1 job x day x 2 weeks

This one is tricky because I barrage applied for a bunch of jobs over the course of like 3 days, but I think it averages out to this.

7. Do something new (tbd)

Okay so this isn't as extreme as I wanted it to be, but I have gotten into vegan cooking and more importantly, baking. It's such an awesome challenge to be able to make something vegan while still tasting delicious (to prove to all the haters out there that just because it's vegan doesn't mean it can't taste good).

8. Make a video about it

And I attempted to video it earlier this year but it is a little hard without a tripod. So I think I will make a video in the new year with something or another (maybe a 60 things in my room or something). But I did my best to document the vegan treats by taking pictures and blogging about them :)

9. Don't drink for a month

This one wasn't so hard I suppose, but I was working at a bar at the time so that made it the tiniest bit harder. I mean when you can have two free drinks after your shift and the occasional shot during your shift, not drinking is definitely a conscious decision.

10. Finish the Look Book

This has been put on a kind of hiatus only for the simple fact that it is extremely hard to coordinate two schedules when you both have different days off and I worked a lot of overtime/two jobs for a good part of the year.

11. Finish Blogmas

To clarify: my 2013 blogmas. And I did do this... in like January.

12. Go ice skating

This WILL be crammed in before the end of the year. /EDIT/ it did not happen and therefore will be rolled over to the next list

13. Explore more places, near or far

I've been lucky enough to explore a lot of places this year from as close as walking the dog to a different part of the town to exploring different states to exploring different Greek islands.

14. Leave the country

As mentioned above: I went to Greece in June for 8 days (Athens, Mykonos, & Santorini). I have vowed to myself that I will leave the country at least once a year because I refuse to be trapped here.

15. Go on a road trip

I've been on two this year (pretty much the same). In February, my father and I drove down to Florida to visit his sister. We stopped in Savannah on the way down and Charleston on the way back. At the beginning of the month, we drove my aunt (same one) down to her Florida condo (she lives there seasonally). We stopped in Myrtle Beach, Charleston, Savannah, and Daytona on the way down this time and flew back home.

16. Go on vacation

Now most of the time, I consider vacation different than just leaving the country or going on a road trip because there is adventuring and touring going on (usually). Though I would consider parts of my Greece a vacation (mostly when Laura and I lounged around on some beaches for three days).

17. Get down to x lbs and stay there

I failed miserably at this one. If anything, I gained and maintained. -_-

18. Do something elaborate for a while

For lent this past year, I became a dessertless vegan 5 days a week. That's pretty extreme for someone who's addicted to chocolate and eats cheese like it's her job.

19. Go out of your way to do something nice for someone

This one I have to think about because I do some nice things for people but they usually have kickbacks for me as well. /EDIT/ complete! I gave up my seat on the packed subway for a mother and her two kids (in retrospect, I actually do this a lot)

20. Make a new friend

This was the most daunting one on the list because I am horrible at being personable when I don't put forth 110% of my being into it. Luckily, I worked with some amazing girls in the office. And honestly, if you told me a year ago that Berkeley and I would be this close I would never have believed it. But she's truly amazing and I can't wait to see Taylor Swift with her in June!! xx

21. Try new food

This pretty much goes hand in hand with becoming a vegan, though I did try new foods outside of that challenge. Kale smoothies, tofu, nutritional yeast, tahini, tomatoes (and I still am not fond of them), and various greek foods and vegan desserts are among some of the things I've pushed myself to try.

22. Write a story

I still have time to complete this! Now I just need the motivation and possibly an idea. But I'm going to make it a point to do this one before the year's up.

I guess I've done a lot this year but I have bigger and grander plans for the next ;) I like this bucket list idea and for 2015 I hope to have 23 things to complete on my list!

love always,

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Pumpkin Scones

Pumpkin Scones: Vegan Recipe and Regular Recipe

Okay so I know I've blogged about these scones before in my fall recipes post here and the results here. But this time I made them vegan! And then I made them again kinda vegan and tiny. You'll see, just keep reading haha

Vegan scone dough

Vegan scone dough. It was suuuuuper sticky but I think I mis-measured the amount of flour I was supposed to put in it. I added more and everything turned out okay.

Vegan Scones

So the story behind these is that my co-worker, Berkeley, loves pumpkin and pumpkin spice and all that jazz. Last year for her birthday, I made these pumpkin scones for her and she loved them (success!). Last year she was just a vegetarian though so these were no problem. However, since the new year, she became a vegan so some things had to be replaced to make them vegan friendly. I am pleased to say that they came out wonderfully and I made them vegan based on my own judgement and substitutions (point for me?)

The original recipe says you can make 6 large scones or 12 regular scones... Holy crap I think the cut-into-12 size scones are large enough. If anything, when I think of scones I think of small treats that are delicate and dainty, ready to be served at high tea. Therefore, when my sister came home for a weekend and wanted to bring back some baked goods for her floor, I immediately volunteered to whip up some of these scones.

xxx

Regular scone dough (24 mini scones)

The ONLY way these were different from Berkeley's vegan scones was that I used real butter. Otherwise, I kept the rest of the substitutions: original unsweetened almond milk for the milk and the pumpkin substitution for the egg.

Pumpkin Scone Recipe (Vegan substitute in parentheses)

Adapted from PortugueseGirlCooks Recipe

Ingredients

Scones:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes (V: Earth Balance)
1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 large egg (V: About another 1/4 cup of pumpkin, maybe a little less)
4 tablespoons (V: non-dairy) milk

Glaze:

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
4 teaspoons (V: non-dairy) milk

Spiced Glaze:

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
pinch ginger
2 teaspoons (V: non-dairy) milk

Directions

Scones:

Adjust oven rack to the middle position and preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, both sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
Cut in the cold butter using a pastry cutter, 2 forks, or even your hands (if you have cooler hands) into the flour mixture until the butter is evenly distributed throughout the flour mixture, and no large lumps remain.
In a small bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, egg (or substitute), and milk. Pour into the flour mixture, and fold to combine. Form the dough into a ball.
On a lightly floured work surface, pat the dough into a long rectangle, about 4x13-inches, and about 1-inch thick. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough vertically:

For 6 scones: into 3 equal pieces, then cut each piece once diagonally to make 2 triangles.
For 12 scones: into 3 equal pieces, cut in half horizontally, then cut each section diagonally to make triangles.
For 24 scones: into 4 equal sections, cut 3 equal horizontal sections, then cut each section diagonally to make triangles.

Place the cut pieces of dough on the prepared baking sheet. Try to space them out as best you can. They won't spread, so don't worry about that. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes, until golden brown. Place on a cooling rack to cool completely.

Glaze:

In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, and milk until smooth. Using a pastry brush, paint the glaze onto the cooled scones. Allow to "dry" for about 5 to 10 minutes, or until the icing is not wet before topping with the spiced glaze.

Spiced Glaze:

In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Whisk in the milk until smooth. You can drizzle the glaze on with a spoon or pipe it with a make shift pastry bag (ziplock with the tip cut off). You can create whatever design or pattern you want.

Enjoy and send pictures!

love always,

Friday, November 14, 2014

Peanut Butter Cups (Vegan & GF)

Hi lovies. I made these delicious 5 ingredient peanut butter cups back in July (you can tell by the table cloth haha) and just now realized that I STILL hadn't posted about them. I'm sorry I deprived you of these for so long!

I happened to buy myself this adorable mini cupcake tin and holders so I decided to use them to make the pb cups. I'm sure you could do it with freestanding cupcake liners but popping a tin in the freezer/fridge is a lot easier than having them slide all over a pan. Just saying...

Peanut Butter Cups

(V&GF)

Recipe

About 1 cup vegan chocolate chips (or 200 g of vegan chocolate)
About 3/4 cups natural peanut butter*
4 tablespoons of melted coconut oil (divided)
Confectioners sugar (start with 1/4 cup and go from there)
Non-dairy milk (I used either unsweetened almond or soy)

*I used unsweetened which did not make for a tasty filling hence the confectioners sugar

** You can also make these with any other kind of nut/seed butter

Directions:

1. Line cupcake pan or just get out the cupcake holders. This will make around 20 pb cups.

2. In a small bowl, scoop out roughly 3/4 cups peanut butter and add in 2 remaining tablespoons of melted coconut oil. Add powdered sugar, stir and taste. If you want it sweeter, add more sugar :) Remember that the vegan chocolate will not be super sweet. Add the non-dairy milk 1 tbsp at a time to thin the mixture to a (natural) peanut butter consistency. Mix well to incorporate and set aside.

3. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler with 2 tbsp of coconut oil. After all is melted & stirred, take off the heat

4. With a spoon, scoop in a little melted chocolate to cover the bottom of each liner. (if you want to be super fancy and not see the peanut butter layer, spread some of the chocolate up the sides of the liner as well). Place in the freezer for about 2 minutes to set.

5. Add a small scoop of peanut butter filling Then scoop more melted chocolate to cover the top. Then pop back into the freezer to firm them up.

adapted from pureella

Expect to see quite a few new foodie posts in the next few days ;)

Enjoy!

love always, xo

Monday, July 14, 2014

Chocolate Chip Pancakes (vegan and whole wheat)

Chocolate Chip Pancakes

(vegan and whole wheat)

Hello lovelies! Here's another delicious recipe idea for you :) oh, and they are vegan of course.

At this point, I've made these pancakes a few times and they are a huge hit (my brother and sister like them too). Plus, they use only a few simple ingredients (take that processed foods) and take about 10 minutes to whip together.

Vegan & Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Yield: About 6 pancakes

Ingredients:

2 tbs Baking Powder

1 cup Whole Wheat Flour (you can use regular flour or gf flour in place of this if you want)

1 tbsp Sugar

1 pinch salt

1 cup almond or soy milk

2 tbsp vegetable/ coconut oil

Vegan chocolate chips (or chunks, no one is judging)

Directions:

1. Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl and create a well in the center.

2. Pour milk into the well and whisk until smooth. Then whisk in oil and chocolate chips (or you can drop chocolate chips into each pancake individually so they don't sink to the bottom.

3. Heat frying pan on medium heat. Use 1/4 cup to pour batter, cook and flip your pancakes til they are cooked all the way through. (You do NOT need to grease the pan. That's why the oil is in the batter :) )

Adapted from this recipe on food.com

Enjoy!love always,xo

Monday, June 16, 2014

Vegan Banana Crumb Muffins

Hello lovelies! So much for posting more often, huh? Haha well I hope you enjoy this delicious and super easy banana crumb muffin recipe. Oh, and spoiler alert: they are VEGAN!

Okay so I've been wanting to try out a vegan muffin recipe for a while now but just haven't had the time or the right amount of overripe bananas. So obviously I couldn't ignore the perfect opportunity to make these... even if I started this project 30 minutes before I had to be at work. (Needless to say I was a little late, but it was so totally worth it!)

I had my brother try one right out of the oven and his response to my "Is it any good?" question was : "Yeah. It tastes like banana." Super helpful, right? Since I was already late, I didn't have much of a choice but to bring them straight from the oven to my car to my coworkers and hope for the best.

Okay so these muffins are absolutely amazing. They are super delicious, flavourful, and are definitely worth the minimal effort it takes to make them. I was honestly ecstatic about how well they were received by vegan and non vegan alike. Also side note: I'm pretty sure I showed certain people that not all vegan food is super weird, unattainable, and funny tasting. Just saying...

Vegan Banana Bread Muffins

(adapted from kitchentreaty's recipe)

yield: 12 STANDARD SIZE OR 9 JUMBO MUFFINS

prep time:20 MINUTES

cook time: 22-25 MINUTES

total time: 45 MINUTES

*calories:

247 (standard size 12 muffins)

330 (Jumbo 9 muffins)

INGREDIENTS:

Muffins:

2 tablespoons flax meal + 6 tablespoons water
1 cup whole-wheat flour (can substitute all-purpose flour)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon of cinnamon (or more if you want!)
1 1/2 cups mashed overripe bananas (about 4 medium bananas)
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup applesauce
1/3 cup vegetable oil or melted coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Crumb topping:

5 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons earth balance (cold)

*Calories vary based on the the ingredients used. These are basic estimates.

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 12-cup standard-size muffin tin with whatever suits your fancy. I used a bit of Earth Balance.
In a small bowl, stir together 2 tablespoons flax meal and 6 tablespoons water. Let sit for 5 minutes to thicken.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
In a medium bowl, mash the bananas. If you're pressed for time or feeling lazy, you can use the electric mixer to mash your bananas. Stir in the brown sugar, applesauce, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and flax/water combination.
Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Stir just until the ingredients are incorporated. Batter will be thick.
Divide batter between 12 muffin cups. If you prefer larger muffins with big, domed crowns, divide the batter between 9 muffin cups instead of all 12.
Crumb topping: in a small bowl, stir together flour and brown sugar. Cut in vegan butter until a crumb-like texture is formed. Sprinkle over the tops of muffin batter.
Bake for 22 - 25 minutes, until the crumb topping is golden brown/a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean.
Remove from oven and place tin on a rack to cool for about five minutes. Transfer individual muffins to a wire rack to let cool completely. This is what you're supposed to do anyway. I literally took the tin and put it in my car.
These muffins keep for 3 - 4 days (not that they'll last that long) in an airtight container at room temperature, or freeze in a zipper bag.

* 211 Calories (MY BATCH MADE ABOUT 14 MUFFINS, SO THIS IS ABOUT HOW MANY CALORIES WERE IN EACH)

Enjoy!

love always,

Monday, April 28, 2014

Quick Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough (Vegan)

Quick Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Hello lovelies! I was looking through my phone and found a BUNCH of pictures of recipes and things that I made but never posted, so expect a few updates ;)

This quick chocolate chip cookie dough literally takes like 3 minutes to make... tops. And part of that time is just waiting for the coconut oil to melt. After that, everything just gets stirred in. PLUS, it's vegan (as long as you use non-dairy chips).

Do you ever find yourself craving cookie dough? Not necessarily to bake it, but just to eat it? This recipe makes the perfect amount for your craving. I found it on Pinterest and decided to try it out :)

5 ingredients, 1 bowl.
That's all you need.