Tag Archives: sweets

Cookie Butter Cookies!

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I am always about trying new fads. I rarely end up thinking they are that great though (i.e. the cronut). Maybe I am just picky. Maybe I am just snooty when it comes to food. Although there are times where I actually think it lives up to the hype (i.e. Lemonade restaurant in LA, the Ramen Burger). I am still sort of iffy about the whole Cookie Butter thing. Some people are addicted to certain brands, some people eat it with a spoon, some people don’t like the Trader Joes kind even though the store limits it to only 2 jars per customer, some people LOVE the original cookie butter (Biscoff brand), some people think its too sweet, some people think its the best thing in the world. I am part of the group who thinks its too sweet, and can only eat it in very small doses. I most definitely won’t eat it with a spoon or put it in everything I eat! But I do like it in the cookies I made- since cookies are already sweet, adding the cookie butter into it gives it a different flavor and increases the sugar high. If you haven’t tried cookie butter yet, I have heard the original Biscoff branded version is the cookie butter best.

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Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies…

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OMG. These cookies are like amazing. I couldn’t believe it when I ate one this morning when I got up and baked these at 6am before I headed to work. The very very slight crispy when you bite into it, and the soft chewy cookie bursting with caramel nut flavor…sigh…anyway, I really do think its the brown butter that makes this cookie sooo good. I’ve never had a more fragrant cookie. When I was making the brown butter, which is basically boiling butter in a saucepan until it turns sort of brownish and brown sediment sinks to the bottom, my whole apartment smelled like melted butter on popcorn at the movie theatres –> to caramel popcorn –> to that rich nutty syrupy smell. It is beyond amazing. Now I really might have a brown butter obsession because of this…until I make the next thing, I’m going to be dreaming about this cookie. Yes, its that good…

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Nutella Chocolate Cake with Strawberries!

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Ever have a craving for chocolate? Hell, I guess everyone does!!! Chocolate and nutella? Even better! I’ve made many chocolate cupcakes before, but I have never really ever been into making cakes- normally its too big and since I’m forever alone I can’t eat it at all or distribute it. This recipe is one of the most moistest, chocolatey, soft cake texture I have ever made! So excited this will become my go-to chocolate cake 🙂 Some fun facts about nutella? An Italian made this up and formed the company Ferrero, with plants all over… the North American nutella is made in Canada. Each jar contains 50 hazelnuts… it has 67% of saturated fat, and 2 tbsp of nutella contains 200 calories!!! A typical candy bar has 250 calories…yikes! Nutella is cray. Because of this awful health makeup, there was a 2012 class action suit for false advertising by Nutella…the label claimed and marketed it as part of a nutritional breakfast! Can you believe that?! Well, the company ended up paying $3 million. World nutella day is February 5. Must remember that for next year. Make this simple cake for your next potluck or fancy dinner! 🙂

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Double Chocolate Chip Heath Bar Cookies

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When I made these divine, soft, and chewy cookies, it was for a company potluck because one of my fellow interns was going back to NYC for the rest of his internship. I of course had to make two things late the night before because I am still such a procrastinator and somewhat of a cooking overachiever….sigh. Anyway, by the time the potluck rolled around, I had already been interning at Venmo for a month. So far so good! I am so thankful to be there and take everyday as a learning experience. I really do love the company am so so thankful for the opportunity to be in a time of growth! (For those of you who don’t know what Venmo is, please please please sign up! It makes life so much easier and seriously is the best thing…ever. Ask anyone who uses it!)

Back to my cookies. I learned a while back that cookies are best when you freeze the cookie dough for at least a few hours or overnight before you bake it because the butter needs time to rest to do its magic. Before this knowledge, I had always wondered why my cookies alwayssss turned out flat and blehhhh compared to store bought kinds that were big, chewy, and thick. When the chef came in to cook for us at the office, her cookies were so blehhhh so I told everyone that I could make better cookies. I hope I lived up to the hype…there were no leftovers and the moms took a few home to their sugar hungry kids. I think these cookies were quite the hit…

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Acai Bowl with Bee Pollen!

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Hot Day? No Problem! Enjoy a vitamin, nutrition, flavor packed ACAI BOWL!!! If you live in SoCal, you totally should get acquainted with this delicious thing because its such a southern cali thing and they have it at a cafe in every beach area. NorCal people, get acquainted too because these are BOMB. My first ever acai bowl was at Swami’s Cafe, in between Del Mar and Solana Beach! I used to go all the time and after a gigantic meal of eggs and potatoes, I always ended with an acai bowl to share. It was also the first time I had BEE POLLEN. Swami’s puts it in the bowls, smoothies, or juices. It is such a dainty little thing and when I looked up where I can buy bee pollen in SD, my search came up with all these nutritional benefits of bee pollen.

What are the nutritional benefits of it? Bee pollen is considered a ‘super-food’ by nutritionalists because it is packed with proteins, essential amino acids, vitamins, carbohydrates, and antioxidants that can increase energy, sharpen memory, and has been said to be a natural remedy for things such as acne, allergies, and high cholesterol.

Where does it come from? When bees fly from each flower to another, the tiny dust particles of the male seed of the blossom sticks onto a bee’s legs, and the bee produces a number of enzymes into the collected pollen as well as saliva among other things. When bees come back to the hive, they pass through this grate the beekeepers built and subsequently the bee pollen falls into a container that collects it! Sounds awfully gross right? hahah well we eat honey!!!

What does it taste like? Tastes a little bit bitter and nutty.

Where can I get it? I got a bottle of it at Sprouts! It was $10.99 for a bottle. Its not cheap-that’s why restaurants and cafes put only a teaspoon on your order every time. But judging from my bottle, it could last me awhile. I plan to throw it into my protein shakes along with my chia seeds. You can also get it at farmers markets from people who sell honey. You have to ask for it.

But BEWARE: Some people may be allergic to bee pollen because they are allergic to airborne pollen or allergic to bee stings. Before you eat this thing, make sure you aren’t allergic or have specific allergies that might make you have a reaction. See a doctor if you aren’t sure!!! You could do a tolerance test, meaning take a kernal a day and increase it everyday until you reach a teaspoon. Read more on the link I provided below.

More about bee pollen here: Bee Pollen; Risks of Bee Pollen

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Lemon Meltaways!

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Had some extra lemons, so decided to make some lemon meltaway cookies! They are sweet, full of citrus flavor, and melt in your mouth! It is basically a shortbread. Sort of like the the Girl Scout Savannah Smiles cookies! I usually get them, but I didn’t buy any Girls Scouts cookies this year because of my fit obsession. But two of these that I ate satisfied my craving. THANK GOD i dont have a crazy sweet tooth like everyone else. Give this a try! I have made it with limes too! Super easy!

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Chocolate Custard Cake!

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When I saw this cake on White on Rice Couple’s blog, my eyes grew big and immediately made the decision to make it…this week. This week also happened to my boss’ birthday and last day at the company so it was the perfect excuse to bake it. I ate a slice for breakfast to ‘test’ it out to make sure its not poisonous before I feed it to people. haha I ate it right out of the fridge – but you should eat it room temperature because it will have a more softened custard like texture. It also isn’t that sweet, so its perfect!

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Compost Cookies!

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In the summer, I was exposed to the world of the Momofuku Milk Bar layer cakes. I was so obsessed with the way it looked that my very first cookbook became the Milk Bar cookbook! For those of you who don’t know this place, its a very famous bakery/restaurant in New York. Their layer cakes and cookies are made with a very interesting mix of ingredients. I spent all summer collecting different things required to make most of the things in the cookbook: cake rings, acetate, quarter sheet pans, glucose, grapeseed oil, mini choc chips for every flavor imaginable, milk powder– the list goes on and on. Its never ending if you want to make something from this cookbook haha! But its fun to walk around the grocery store and see something and be like OH! I can use it for X recipe in the cookbook! I followed the recipe exactly, but if I were to make it again, I would have made the cookie portions smaller because the cookies spread, and I like my cookies medium sized. My friends love them, so I guess I cant complain since I only eat like one. haha! The cookbook is great because the recipes reflect exactly what you get if you go to the actual bakery to buy it– even the sizing of it all is the same =) Recipe after the jump!

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