The Good, the Bad, and the Yummy
May 11th, 2012 § 11 Comments
Hello Bloggies! Yesterday was a bit of a whirlwind day, hence the lack of posting. It was a mix of good and bad…and yummy! Let me tell you how things went down.
First block United States History class. We were debating different groups’ views on Andrew Jackson’s presidency. My group won. Good. 
We finished reading A Raisin in the Sun in English class and got to begin watching the movie. Good.
I had to take the Algebra test that I mentioned a few days ago. I could only answer 8 out of 12 questions on it. Bad. 
It was a beautiful day so I went for a run when I got home from school. Good.
I had a crapload of homework. Bad.
After the aforementioned crapload of homework was completed, I baked a cake. Good.
It wasn’t just any cake, though. I baked a Cinnamon Roll Cake and drizzled it with some cream cheese frosting. Yummy! :-D
How was your day yesterday? Good? Bad?
How was your day today? Good? Bad?
Either way, I know what you should do to bring it to the next level. Yes, the Level of Yummy.
Bake this cake.
Seriously, make yourself some Cinnamon Roll Cake. It’s soft, and sweet, and gooey, and cinnamon-y, and flat-out delicious.
Bake it in celebration of the weekend. Bake it for your Mom.
Just bake it.
You won’t regret it! 
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream
May 9th, 2012 § 8 Comments
You know what feels pretty great to a foodie like me?
When someone tells you that something you made recently was so good that they want you to make it again…and again…and again.
It feels so nice to know that something you made tasted exceptionally delicious to someone other than yourself. Especially when it’s someone close to you. Someone who, let’s say, has an entire day in their celebration this coming Sunday.
I don’t have time to write a long drawn out post (I’m supposed to be studying for my Algebra II test!), but yeah, this is for you Mom.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream
“Vanilla ice cream studded with chunks of chocolate chip cookie dough.”
Cookie dough adapted from my Chocolate-Covered Cookie Dough Cups and Joy the Baker
Ingredients:
- 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup + 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup yogurt (I used vanilla greek yogurt.)
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, roughly chopped (mini chocolate chips would be ideal!)
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract, separated
- 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 2 cups heavy cream, cold
Directions:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, fit with a paddle attachment, (or in a large bowl with a wooden spoon) cream together butter and sugars. Beat in yogurt along with 1 teaspoon of the vanilla extract and stir to combine.
- Add flour and salt to the butter and sugar mixture and stir until incorporated. Fold in chocolate chips and refrigerate until ready to use.
- In a stand mixer with whisk attachment, beat heavy cream on high-speed until it becomes stiff, approximately 2 minutes.
- In a separate mixing bowl, mix together the remaining 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and sweetened condensed milk. Fold whipped heavy cream into the condensed milk mixture and small, 1-centimeter chunks, ocassionally stirring to combine, until all cookie dough is used up.
- Transfer mixture to a freezer-safe bowl with a lid and freeze for at least 6 hours. Scoop into bowls and enjoy!
Yield: 6-8 servings
Six Things Saturday
May 5th, 2012 § 9 Comments
…aaaaand this weekend is officially off to a great start! I have so much to say (about this weekend and otherwise) that I’m not even going to try to make each thing neatly flow into one another. Nope, not even going to try. Instead I’m just going to split everything up into 6 categories and ramble to my heart’s content. Can you handle it? 
1. Matthew’s Communion
This morning was my younger cousin, Matthew’s, first Holy Communion and it went pretty (surprisingly?) smoothly. I say that for three reasons. 1.) Matthew’s grandfather told him to ask the priest for the chocolate-flavored Communion and for months we’ve been trying to convince him that his grandfather was only kidding. He didn’t believe us. 2.) Yesterday Matthew asked my aunt if anyone ever threw the holy water in the air and tried to catch it in their mouths. My aunt told him that nobody ever had and urged him not to be the first. 3.) Matthew is the craziest kid I know so it would not be surprising if he had actually attempted the previous two things…but he didn’t. Thank goodness! Matthew looked like a little man and was even chosen to present the gifts to the priest. SO. CUTE.
2. My Favorite Baseball Tournament
Is it strange that I have a favorite one of Phil’s baseball tournaments? I hope not, because this weekend’s tournament at Cal Ripken’s fields in Maryland is my absolute 100% favorite. It’s well-organized, we get to stay in a beautiful hotel right next to the fields, Phil’s team won the tournament once, and it’s only 15 minutes away from Golden Corral.
3. Golden Corral
Speaking of Golden Corral…I’m kind-of obsessed. I don’t even know why I like it so much, but I’m so excited that I get to go later tonight. I’m beyond ready for the salad bar, macaroni and cheese (seriously, it’s amazing!), steak, and self-serve ice cream. Bring it on!
4. How I Met Your Mother
Now onto some of the more random stuff. I don’t know if I already mentioned it on here or not, but lately I’ve been obsessed with How I Met Your Mother. I watched my first episode (which just so happened to be the “Nothing Suits Me Like A Suit” episode) at a sleepover last year, forgot about the show for 6 months, downloaded all of the seasons on Netflix, and became addicted. Right now I’m on season 4 and, yes, Barney Stinson is my favorite character.
5. History Class
I have so much to say about this class. It’s my favorite. It’s one of those classes that you can mess around all you want, for the most part, and still feel like you learned something. My period: 1-2 history class is filled with wise-cracking class clowns, so there never (I repeat never!) is a dull moment. Last week was the junior Prom and my history teacher was in charge of chaperoning the post Prom. The post Prom went until about 2AM and then he came into school the next day. He was not in a good mood. He went to draw the United States on the board and it looked terrible so, of course, half of my class was telling him to redraw it because he left out Texas. He got annoyed and shouted “Jesus Christ! Does it really matter?!” The class went quiet. Fast-forward to a few days ago we bring up how angry he was that day and he changed the subject and asked us what the difference between nationalism and sectionalism was. All of a sudden one of my classmates yells out “Jesus Christ! Does it really matter?!” The entire class, including my teacher, began cracking up. It made my day.
6. YouTube
Who doesn’t like YouTube videos? Here are some of my favorites as of late…
Don’t Be That Guy At Thanksgiving
Neil Patrick Harris’ Tony Awards 2011 Opening
…so there you have it. That’s how my life has been as of late. What’s new with you?
Have a great weekend!
