Cocoa Hazelnut Macarons with Buttercream Filling

 Hi, Everybody! Happy Weekend! Yet another busy week has gone by, and I'm so happy that the weekend is here again! I wanted to share these Cocoa Hazelnut Macarons with you today; you see, macarons have been like my culinary Mount Everest, an unattainable feat. I have tried making them unsuccessfully before and have been so intimidated ever since, but have finally decided to give them a try again! The result? Well, let's just say much better than the last time! These aren't quite the classic Parisian macarons as they use ground hazelnuts instead of almond flour, but I really liked the sound of the recipe, and they turned out pretty well! They are crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, and the cocoa and hazelnut flavors work really well together! Here's what I did...

COCOA HAZELNUT MACARONS 

*Makes about 20 Macarons*
(Recipe from Better Homes and Gardens)

YOU WILL NEED:
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1 cup finely ground hazelnuts
2 tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
3 egg whites
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Dash of salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. In your electric mixer bowl, combine the egg whites, vanilla and salt. Beat until frothy, then, with the mixer running, add the granulated sugar in three parts. Beat on high speed for a couple of minutes, until stiff glossy white peaks form.

2. In a smaller bowl, combine ground hazelnuts, powdered sugar and cocoa. Very gently stir this mixture into the egg white mixture. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and fill a decorating bag with the macaron mixture (you will need about a 1/2 inch decorating tip). Pipe 1 1/2 inch circles onto your parchment paper lined baking sheets, leaving about an inch between the circles. Let them sit for about a half hour, then bake at 325deg F for 8 - 9 minutes.

*Notes - I made a simple buttercream filling for the macarons, but you could definitely use a chocolate or even a Nutella filling here. I wasn't sure why my macaron shells cracked, so I looked it up and found out that humidity has a significant effect on this. And since it's super hot and humid outside, I guess it's possible!

Happy Baking, Everyone! Have a great weekend!

I will be linking to:

Mangia Mondays at Delightfully Dowling, Makin' You Crave Mondays, Skip to My Lou, Tip Junkie, Cozy Home Scenes, The Shabby Nest, My Romantic Home, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, Bubbly Nature Creations, Tatertots and Jello, Six Sisters' Stuff, Be Different, Act Normal and Country Momma Cooks.

Homemade Pizza

Hi, Everyone! So I really can't take credit for this post, or at least not for the pizza, because it was made by my husband! I love it when he makes pizza, not only because it means that I don't have to cook, but also because he makes some REALLY good pizza! Homemade dough, thin crust, crispy around the edges, soft on the inside... just perfect! Here's our dinner from a couple of nights ago... so good! Unfortunately I don't have a recipe to share with you, since I don't even have the dough recipe myself! But here are some pictures!

I hope you all have some fun plans for the weekend and get to enjoy it and relax! It has been SO hot here in New Jersey these past couple of days! We were doing a lot of running around yesterday and at one point, it was 104 deg F when we got into our car in the afternoon! I feel like I'm going to melt every time I step outside! We are off to the beach tomorrow to cool down in the ocean at least a little bit, hopefully! Have a great weekend, everyone!

Blueberry Yogurt Cake

Hi, Everyone! This Blueberry Yogurt Cake is a really quick and easy dessert perfect for summertime! The cake is deliciously sweet and moist thanks to the yogurt (and the butter, of course!) and the blueberries add a burst of fresh flavor! And top it with some powdered sugar, whipped cream and fresh blueberries, and you have a great summer dessert that takes under an hour to make (including baking time!) Here's the recipe...

BLUEBERRY YOGURT CAKE

*Makes one 8x8 inch cake*

(Adapted from My Recipes)

YOU WILL NEED:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick = 4oz) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup plain low fat yogurt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 tbs powdered sugar (to sprinkle on baked cake)

DIRECTIONS:

1. First, cream the butter and sugar together in your electric mixer bowl, until light and fluffy. With the mixer on, add in the eggs and the vanilla extract, and mix until you have a smooth mixture.

2. In another bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Then, add in yogurt and mix until all ingredients are well incorporated.

3. Preheat your oven to 350deg F and line an 8x8 inch baking pan with parchment paper. Very gently and carefully, stir the blueberries into the batter, then pour it into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 40 - 45 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Happy Baking, Everyone!

I will be linking to:

Mangia Mondays at Delightfully Dowling, Makin' You Crave Mondays, Skip to My Lou, Tip Junkie, The Shabby Nest, My Romantic Home, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, Bubbly Nature Creations, Tatertots and Jello, Six Sisters' Stuff and Be Different, Act Normal. 

From Old T-Shirt to Pink Heart Wreath...

Hi, Everybody! Happy Weekend!!! After a long and busy week I couldn't be happier that the weekend is here! And I'm excited to share this wreath tutorial with you today... if you're looking for a fun weekend project to do, this is a great one! One of my favorite things to do is to take old things and give them new life by turning them into something new! I guess that's why I have such a hard time throwing anything away (which is why my craft room looks more like a big storage pile of "I think I could use that for something one day" stuff!) I made this Pink Heart Wreath for my craft room door out of an old pink t-shirt and a pair of old brown pants, and I love the way it turned out, so I thought I would share how I made it with you! Here's what I did...

PINK T-SHIRT HEART WREATH

Supplies I used: Old t-shirt (pink fabric), old pair of pants (brown fabric), card stock, hot glue and glue gun, sewing machine (I used a sewing machine to make the brown bow, but you could do this by hand too, or you could just use some ribbon to make a bow!)

To make the wreath, I first cut up the old pink t-shirt into strips about 1 inch wide and 10 inches long to make the pink fabric wheels. My wreath was made up of 18 wheels, so I cut 18 strips (one fabric strip makes 1 fabric wheel). I made each fabric wheel by twisting the fabric strip and sticking one end down onto a piece of card stock using hot glue. Once you have one end stuck down, continue twisting the fabric and going around in a circle, sticking it down as you go along. Cut each wheel out so you have 18 (or however many you are using) individual fabric wreaths. This is what the fabric wheels should look like:

Next, I arranged and layered the fabric wheels to make a heart shaped wreath. Using hot glue, I attached the wheels to each other (if the wreath doesn't seem to be stable enough and hold its shape well, you could use tape on the back to secure it). This is how I arranged my wreath:

Once my wreath was done, I made my bow. I used some old brown fabric for the bow and sewed it using my sewing machine, but you could definitely use regular ribbon and make a bow out of that. I also cut up and sewed some brown fabric strips to hang the wreath on the door. I attached both the strips and the bow onto the wreath using hot glue. Here is the bow on the wreath:

And here is the finished Heart Wreath!

So the next time you find an old t-shirt that you want to throw out, see if you can use it to make something new and pretty out of it! I hope I've inspired you with my idea!

Happy Crafting, Everyone!

I will be linking to:

Skip to My Lou, Tip Junkie, The Shabby Nest, My Romantic Home, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, Bubbly Nature Creations, Tatertots and Jello, Six Sisters' Stuff, It's Overflowing and Be Different, Act Normal. 

DIY Muffin Wrappers

Hi, Everybody! Here is a quick little tip for how to make your own muffin wrappers! I love baking different breakfast muffins and love cute muffin liners, but I love the way lots of bakeries wrap their baked goods in parchment paper like this. So as soon as I saw Martha Stewart do this, I tried out! Here's what you do...

DIY MUFFIN WRAPPERS

All you need is some parchment paper! Cut it into 5 inch squares and press each square into one cup on your muffin pan, creasing the edges to make it fit inside. You can spray the cups with some cooking spray before pressing the parchment paper in to make it stick, but I didn't find it necessary, they held in place well enough without it. So the next time you are baking some breakfast muffins and you want to do something different or if you ever run out of muffin liners, try this!

 Happy Baking, Everyone!

I will be linking to:

Skip to My Lou, Tip Junkie, The Shabby Nest, My Romantic Home, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, Bubbly Nature Creations, Tatertots and Jello, Six Sisters' Stuff, It's Overflowing and Be Different, Act Normal. 

Black & White Silhouette Plaques

Hi, Everybody! I hope you are all having a great weekend, and that it's as beautiful and sunny where you are as it is here in New Jersey this weekend! I have a really cute and easy project to share with you today! I love silhouette art, I just think it's so pretty, elegant and timeless, so I wanted to make some for our bedroom. Here is how I made them...

BLACK & WHITE SILHOUETTE PLAQUES

Supplies you will need: Two wooden plaques, white spray paint, black all purpose paint and a paintbrush, black ribbon, hot glue and glue gun and Mod Podge. 

For these silhouettes, I bought two 5x7 inch oval wooden plaques, but you can use whatever shape plaque you want. I spray painted them white (if your plaques are glossy you can sand them down a little first); you can do a couple of coats of spray paint so they are coated completely. Once they were dry, I drew my silhouettes on them using a pencil (you can either draw actual silhouettes or find examples online, print and cut them out and trace around them). Next, using some black paint, I carefully painted the silhouettes. I let them dry, and then painted two coats of Mod Podge on top of the whole plaque (paint the sides too), just so that the both the spray paint and the black paint were sealed well. Then, I made a loop out of black ribbon (to hang the plaque) and attached it to the back of the plaque using hot glue. To finish it off, I glued a bow to the top of the loop!

These would make really cute gifts too, for a bridal shower, a wedding or a housewarming gift! It's a really fun, easy and quick project that's under $10 to make! Hope I've all inspired you to make your own silhouette art! Happy Crafting, Everyone! Enjoy your weekend!

I will be linking to:

Skip to My Lou, Tip Junkie, The Shabby Nest, My Romantic Home, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, Bubbly Nature Creations, Tatertots and Jello, Six Sisters' Stuff, It's Overflowing, Making the World Cuter and Be Different, Act Normal. 

Tea Lover's Bookmarks on Etsy!

Hi, Everybody! Just wanted to let you all know that my Tea Lover's Bookmarks are available on Etsy now! These handmade bookmarks are made out of felt, and come in a set of two. They make a great little gift for any tea lover! Come over to my Etsy shop and check them out!

Have a great day, Everyone!

Raspberry Lemon Loaf

Hi, Everyone! This Raspberry Lemon Loaf that I'm sharing with you today is one of my absolute favorite things to bake! It's super quick and easy to make, and has such great flavor from the lemon juice and zest, and the addition of the fresh raspberries! It's deliciously moist thanks to the yogurt that's used, and the syrup that's poured over the finished loaf! If you've never made this loaf before, you should really give it a try! Happy Baking, Everyone!

RASPBERRY LEMON LOAF

(Adapted from Ina Garten)

*Makes 1 loaf*

YOU WILL NEED:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup plain yogurt (I used fat free)
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
Grated zest of one lemon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
6oz (about 1 1/2 cups) fresh raspberries

Syrup:
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

DIRECTIONS:

1. In your electric mixer bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. In another, smaller bowl, whisk together yogurt, 1 cup of sugar, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla. With the mixer running, begin adding the wet ingredients to the dry, until you have a smooth mixture. Then, using a spatula, fold in oil.

2. Preheat your oven to 350deg F and line a loaf pan with parchment paper. Sprinkle your raspberries with about 1/2 tbs of all-purpose flour and toss gently, so they are all coated (this is so that they don't stick all together in the batter). Add them to the batter, make sure you stir them in very gently and carefully so they don't fall apart.

3. Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan and bake for 50 - 60 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let rest for 10 minutes.

4. While the loaf is resting, make your syrup. In a little pan, heat up 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 cup lemon juice. Stir constantly, until the sugar has dissolved, just for a couple of minutes. Then, pour the syrup over the loaf and let it soak in, this will make it wonderfully flavorful and moist!

Happy Baking, Everyone!

I will be linking to:

Mangia Mondays at Delightfully Dowling, Makin' You Crave Mondays, Skip to My Lou, Tip Junkie, Cozy Home Scenes, The Shabby Nest, My Romantic Home, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, Bubbly Nature Creations, Tatertots and Jello, Six Sisters' Stuff and Be Different, Act Normal. 

Happy June!

Happy June, Everyone! I'm so excited that the summer is almost here! Although I'm dreading the heat and humidity that it brings with it, I can't wait for the summer to officially start! Trips to the beach, traveling, eating lots of ice-cream and those beautiful summer nights...! Here's what the end of spring has looked like here...

My new favorite ice-cream flavor: Sweet & Salty Caramel Pretzel! They make this ice-cream at a farm shop down the road from us, and it is DELICIOUS! Nothing like ending a long, hot day with a cup of this ice-cream!

After making my Heirloom Tomato Galette, I made another one, this time an Apple and Caramelized Galette with Goat Cheese. It was so easy to make and those flavors worked really well together. I love anything with goat cheese!

I love getting mail, and since my friends are scattered all around the world, it makes getting letters and packages even more fun! One of my best friends recently moved to Thailand, and this is what I got in the mail the other day! How cute is that cat stationery!?

As soon as I got the May issue of Martha Stewart Living, I knew I had to try the Swirl Meringue Cookies that were on the cover! I was so excited because they looked so cute, and so one night after I got home from work, I decided to give them a try. What (for some crazy reason) looked like an easy recipe turned into a disaster, and my meringues (picture on the left) look nothing like Martha's (picture on the right). I'm not giving up though, and will give them a try some other time again - how cute would these be in red and white with a peppermint flavor for Christmas!

And finally, because everyone needs a little sparkle in their life! My new favorite nail color with some added glitter! (Paint nails, sprinkle glitter on top, then pain with a coat of clear nail polish!)

Hope you all have a great weekend!