End of summer fun and toddler-tastic fashion!

The lazy days of summer are winding down and school is starting back. Which means my favorite season is around the corner! We are still cramming as much summer fun into these last days as we can. We've been chalking up the sidewalks and eating as  many peaches as we can get our hands on.

I made a Rustic Peach and Raspberry Gillette for a Saturday night get together. SUPER easy and mucho delish.

If you follow my Instagram, you may have seen me working on a chalk board for one of my teacher friend's classroom. I took a while to do, but I really enjoyed the process. I'm hoping to do some more in the near future.

With fall JUST around the corner, I am DYING over the new baby fashion rolling out at GAP. It's toddler-tastic. That little denim jacket is on sale for $11.99!

Denim Jacket (on SALE!) / Skinny Cargo pants / Squirrel Dress / Gold flats

Coffee Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

I have wanted an ice cream maker for years now. Finally I got one for Christmas last year and I JUST now used it for the first time... I guess I didn't realize the prep it took to make ice cream. In my head, you just dump some milk in the bowl and BOOM - tasty ice cream. HA!

Homemade ice cream isn't hard, but you do need to plan ahead in order to give it time to cool and chill. I keep my Kitchenaid Ice Cream Bowl in the freeze all the time so that it is at the ready anytime I get the itch.

Here's the recipe I used to make Coffee Chocolate Chip Ice Cream. It was insane delicious.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups milk
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons instant espresso
• 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips or chopped chocolate bar

Directions:

1. Whisk together first 3 ingredients in a large heavy saucepan. Gradually whisk in milk and half-and-half. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, 8 to 10 minutes or until mixture thickens slightly. Remove from heat.
2. Whisk egg yolk. Gradually whisk about 1 cup hot cream mixture into yolk. Add yolk mixture to remaining cream mixture, whisking constantly. Whisk in espresso.
3. Pour mixture through a mesh strainer into a bowl, discarding solids. Cool 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Place plastic wrap directly on cream mixture; chill 8 to 24 hours. (I only chilled 6 hours.)
4. Pour mixture into ice-cream maker and churn per manufactures instructions (stir in chocolate halfway through freezing). 

original recipe here.

Nap Time Holiday Baking!

I ALWAYS bake goodies during the holidays. My mom and I used to get together one day between Thanksgiving and Christmas and just bake all day long for friends and family. Well, last year I was super pregnant but it didn't stop me from making a few things here and there. I wasn't able to stay on my feet all day though, that was for sure. So I told myself I would definitely go all out this year! Then I realized something,...I have an almost 11 month old... So starts my week of nap time baking! I can get a good hour in the morning just set aside for making treats so I am trying to use it wisely!


Yesterday during nap time, I made this Mint Chocolate Chip fudge. SUPER delicious and ridiculously easy. While you are stirring the frosting and chocolate I wouldn't recommend trying to simultaneously clean and descale your Keurig machine. The chips melt faster and smoother if you stand there and stir.

 

Pretty much all it is, is:

1 container of vanilla frosting

1 bag of white chocolate chips

1 packet of Duncan Hines Mint Chocolate Frosting Creations

A few mini chocolate chips for sprinkling on top

Using a double broiler, mix and melt the first 3 ingredients until smooth

Pour into a 9x9 pan lined with parchment or wax paper

Immediately sprinkle with mini chips (or whatever you like)

Pop into the fridge for an hour or so until hard.

TODAY for nap time, I made my favorite go to sugar cookie dough so it can hang out in the fridge until tomorrow when I can roll - cut - bake! You can find my go to recipe here.

And follow my Christmas Baking Pintrest board for some of the recipes I'll be trying out in upcoming nap times!

FAST Desserts - Strawberry Banana Bowl

My little one is 6 months old now but I still find myself craving sweets in the evenings like I did when I was pregnant. Probably not the best way to dump off these last few pounds of baby weight! I've started to get creative with what we have to put together healthy-ish after dinner desserts. Instead of ice cream I keep around light or low fat whipped topping, fresh fruits, fat free chocolate sauce (like you make chocolate milk with), low calorie graham crackers, nuts, things like that. Then I think of a dessert that I WISH I had. In this case, it was a mix between a banana split and a strawberry pie (or any pie, let's be honest!). Thus is born, the Strawberry Banana Bowl!

1. In each bowl, cut up half a banana and a couple of strawberries. 
2. On top of that, crumble 1 plain graham cracker.
3. Drizzle with chocolate syrup. (chocolate milk making kind)
4. Top with a dollop of light or fat free whipped topping (the kind in the tub)
5. Optional - a pinch of chocolate sprinkles and a cherry!