Mini Cinnamon Rolls

I remember I used to beg, cry and throw a tantrum at my mom whenever I walked past the Cinnabon store at the mall. I remember I made excuses to go to the mall just because I was craving a Cinnabon. Once I got my hands on a roll, I would eat every single bit of it and savor it 'till my plate was clean. A classic white Cinnabon roll blasted my sweet taste buds on fire. To be honest, it still does. Scrolling through my Pinterest the other day, I came across a Cinnamon Roll recipe from one of my favorite bloggers, Taralynn Mcnitt, and adjusted it a little (I only did half of it). I've followed her amazing journey for about two years now and I love that she knows how to balance a healthy life while treating herself to the things she loves. That is what I am planning to do with this blog, in addition to sharing other girly things. I decided to run to the kitchen and bake myself a batch of these amazing cinnamon rolls. They are heavenly, and if it were up to me, I'd eat them all up by myself. But that's not possible because my family also loved them, and they want their share too. This is why I love baking. I get to make other people enjoy a piece of heaven with my hands.   

Mini Cinnamon Rolls 

(Makes about 30 mini rolls)

Ingredients for Dough: 

• 1 cup of warm water
• 1 package of Active Dry Yeast
• 1/2 tbsp of salt 
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/3 stick of butter, melted
• 3 cups of flour (plus more for rolling the dough later)
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (or more for preference)
• 1/4 stick of margarine
• cinnamon 

Ingredients for Icing: 

• 1/2 stick of butter
• 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar (or more for consistency)
• 2-4 tbsps of milk (I used almond milk)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions: 

1. Mix together yeast and warm water.
2. Once the yeast is dissolved, pour in the sugar and combine. 
3. Pour in 1/3 cup of melted butter and only 1 1/2 cups of flour. Mix together
4. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg, and then add to the rest.
5. After the eggs are completely mixed, add the remaining flour, and salt. 
6. Cover the dough with a sheet of wax paper and a towel and wait for about 45 to 60 minutes in a warm area.
7. Sprinkle flour on a counter (as much as you need) to roll out the dough. I split up the dough into three parts. 
8. NOW. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
9. Once you've rolled out the dough, melt 1/4 stick of margarine and brush it onto the layer of dough. 
10. Spread out brown sugar on top. The more the better!
11. Sprinkle as much cinnamon as you want on top of the brown sugar. 
12. Roll the dough layer up.
13. Cut out about 1 inch pieces.  
14. Place the rolls on a greased or non-stick mini cupcake sheet. 
15. Bake for about 13-16 minutes. Keep an eye on them. They should be lightly brown on the outside.
16. Let them cool completely before adding the icing if you don't plan on eating them right away. 

Icing Instructions: 

1. Melt the butter in a microwave safe bowl. 
2. Add 1 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and whisk. 
3. Slowly add the milk and vanilla. If it's too runny add more powdered sugar. If it's too thick, add more milk. I only used 1 1/12 cup of powdered sugar. 
4. Once the rolls are completely cool, frost them. The icing will thicken, so put them in the microwave for 20 seconds and enjoy. The icing melts and they are marvelous! 

Jilly's Cupcake Bar & Cafe

After about more than a month of not posting anything on my blog, I now feel compelled to catch up with you, my dear readers. I apologize for my not so leisure. The reason for me abandoning you is completely valid. I have spent about forty hours a week dancing my heart and soul out. This summer I decided to take a ballet summer intensive for the first time in my life. Let me tell you, dear readers, that I do not regret a single second of this one month long experience. Sweat, blood, and tears have driven me into becoming a more experienced ballerina. 

However, I cannot go on until I write a single blog post about my new obsession. Go figure, I am obsessed with yet another thing. It is my love for sweets and desserts that has started this guilty pleasure. As it just happens that my brother lives about a block away from only the most amazing (and only one, I believe) cupcake shop in the St. Louis, Missouri area where I am residing. So here it goes. Enjoy, sugar lovers. 

{My first weekend in St. Louis, Missouri, my brother, his roommate, my dad, and I visited Jilly's Cupcake Shop (for my dad and I's first time).}

I ate the top left cupcake, Bee Sting

Cake: Vanilla

Filling: Honey Lemon Curd

Topping: Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting, Toasted Almonds, White Chocolate Bark With Crushed Lemon Candies

My dad ate the top right cupcake, Raspberry Lemon Twist

CAKE: Lemon Cake 

FILLING: Raspberry Jam 

TOPPING: Lemon & Raspberry Cream Cheese Icing Swirl, Multi-Colored Sugar, Fresh Raspberry and Candied Lemon Peel

My brother ate the bottom right, Missylicious 

Cake: Vanilla

Filling: Vanilla Whipped Cream

Topping: Pink & Green Vanilla Buttercream

My brother's roommate ate the bottom left, Chocolate Thunder

Cake: Chocolate

Filling: Dark Chocolate Ganache

Topping: Milk Chocolate Buttercream, Vanilla Buttercream, Chocolate Shavings, Chocolate Bark

{The second time around, it was just my brother and I on a little cupcake date.} 

I had the cupcake on the left, Twisted Pink Velvet

Cake: Pink Velvet

Filling: Caramel

Topping: Cream Cheese, Caramel Buttercream & Pecan Praline

My brother had the cupcake on the left, Strawberry Lemonade

CAKE: Strawberry/Lemon Swirl

FILLING: Strawberry & Lemon Whipped Cream

TOPPING: Strawberry & Lemon Buttercream, White Chocolate Straw and Lemon Candy Wedge

{The third time around I went for a simple yet savory classic.}

24-Karat Carrot Cake
Cake: Carrot (made with walnuts)
Filling: Vanilla Whipped Cream
Topping: Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting, Toasted Coconut, White Chocolate Shavings & 24 Karat Gold Dust

Pineapple Jam Crumb Bars

The end of the week comes around and all you wanna do is lay back and enjoy the last 24 hours before you have to begin a new round of school drama, homework, tests, early mornings, and late night study sessions. My go-to thing to relax and get away from the world is baking (and running, dancing, playing the piano, painting from time to time, watching shows, and...yes, I like to organize stuff, hence my OCD). So, today, I was eyeing my new prized possession. A 127 recipe book with everything you need to and want to know to succeed in a kitchen with an oven. I read through the ones that caught my attention, and this one Jam Crumble Bars was one of them. Although the recipe called for raspberry jelly and pecans, I didn't have any of these two around in the kitchen, so I had to improvise. I grabbed a jar of the best pineapple jelly in Honduras (an old lady from Guinope makes it) and skipped the pecans and added oatmeal instead (weird, I know, but tasty). This was so, so easy to make! And I have so many ideas for what kind of jelly to use in the future that would make them so distinct in their own way (strawberry jelly, apple jelly, apricot jelly, or even grape jelly).  

Pineapple Jam Crumb Bars

Makes about 9, 1" bars

(Per 1 bar: 133 calories, 5.3 (g) Fat, 20.6 (g) Carbs, 1.2 (g) Protein)

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup flour
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/8 cup oatmeal
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup pineapple jam (the recipe called for blackberry or raspberry jam but any kind is fine!) 

Directions: 

1. Preaheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Line a baking pan with aluminum foil
3. In food processor (I used an electric mixture) blend flour, oatmeal, brown sugar, baking soda, and cinnamon.
4. Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse crumbs and when pressed, holds together
5. Add about 3/4 of the mix to the bottom of the pan; reserve the rest for later
6. With a spatula or a table knife, spread the jam evenly on the dough
7. Crumble the rest of the dough on top
8. Bake for about 30-40 minutes or until it starts to golden
9. When cool, lift foil out of pan; peel foil away
10. Cut and serve! (I wonder what they would taste like if served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. Hm... maybe next time.)

Little Things

It seems like forever since I last wrote on my blog. I feel like a tiny portion of my heart has fallen off. Haha, I'm kidding. I've been so incredibly busy lately! I don't know if I think that's a good thing or a bad thing because I have been doing all of my favorite things from cooking, to dancing, to playing the piano, to learning French, and even reading. But sometimes I need to relax and sit back and pour my heart out to you, dear reader (if I have any! Haha) I hope you enjoy a few  of my favorite things. 

{Mutant strawberries from a mountain peak near my house.}

{A comforting chamomile tea on a Saturday morning during French class. A classic heart on the top of my cup just for the sake of not having any idea what the teacher was saying on the first day} 

{Probably the most heavenly thing on this faulty Earth. White Chocolate TOBLERONE}

{Quick fro-yo date with my mom. I had the usual natural fro-yo topped with strawberries, and added pineapple to twist things up a bit}

{The most mouth-watering crepe on the surface of the Earth (that I've tasted so far). Crepe Belga from La Creperia. White chocolate, strawberries, ice cream, whipped cream, garnished with chocolate syrup and powdered sugar.}

Chocolate Chip Butter Cookies

You can never, I repeat, NEVER, go wrong with a classic chocolate chip cookie. Chips Ahoy, Famous Amos, Mrs. Fields, Pillsbury...you name it, everyone loves it! Chocolate chip cookies are definitely a comfort food. They bring a sense of nostalgia and take me back to when my brother and I used to sneak in the kitchen at midnight to dunk Chips Ahoy in a big glass of milk. Today, after a long, long week of exams, I decided to liberate my stress by baking a batch of these delightful cookies. I kind of made up this recipe simply by adding chocolate chips to my favorite classic butter cookies, previewed HERE. They were so easy and quick to make and turned out to be pretty damn deliciously comforting.

Chocolate Chip Butter Cookies
Makes about 26 tablespoon sized cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 stick of butter
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
• 1/3 tbsp baking powder
• 1/3 tbsp salt
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• Chopped pecans (optional and highly recommended)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Mix the butter and the sugar in an electric mixer. Then add the egg and mix well until it gets fluffy. 
3. Separately, mix all of the dry ingredients together.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the butter, sugar, and egg mixture. 
5. Lastly, add the chocolate chips. 
6. With a tablespoon, make dough circles and place them on a cookie sheet.
7. Bake for approximately 10 minutes. Do not let them brown too much if you don't want them crunchy.
8. Enjoy with a big glass of milk or coffee! 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Homemade Oreos

Every Christmas eve, my family has a traditional holiday dinner where all of my cousins, aunts, and uncles share laughter, smiles, and hugs. For the past three years (ever since I've been perfecting my baking skills), I have made up some kind of dessert to have around for guests to try. One year I made chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting and Oreo crumbs on top. Another year I made Grayves and brownies with crushed candy cane and Hershey's cookies and cream. This year, I decided to bake Chilenas de Dulce de Leche (Alfajores) and Homemade Oreos. I saw this recipe on Cupcakes and Cashmere, but I will never achieve Emily Schuman's perfection.

Homemade Oreos

(Makes about 40 one teaspoon size sandwich cookies)

Ingredients: 

For the chocolate wafers:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa (I used Hershey's)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 to 1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1 large egg

 

For the filling:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1/4 cup  vegetable shortening
2 cups  sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Set two racks in the middle of the oven. Preheat to 375°F.
2. In a food processor, or bowl of an electric mixer, thoroughly mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, salt, and sugar. While pulsing, or on low speed, add the butter, and then the egg. Continue processing or mixing until dough comes together in a mass.
3. Take rounded teaspoons of batter and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet approximately two inches apart. With moistened hands, slightly flatten the dough. Bake for 9 minutes, rotating once for even baking. Set baking sheets on a rack to cool.
4. To make the cream, place butter and shortening in a mixing bowl, and at low speed, gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla. Turn the mixer on high and beat for 2 to 3 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.
5. To assemble the cookies, in a pastry bag with a 1/2 inch, round tip, pipe teaspoon-size blobs of cream into the center of one cookie. Place another cookie, equal in size to the first, on top of the cream. Lightly press, to work the filling evenly to the outsides of the cookie. Continue this process until all the cookies have been sandwiched with cream. Dunk generously in a large glass of milk.

Arab Weekend

WARNING: IF YOU'RE HUNGRY PLEASE DON'T LOOK AT THESE PICTURES. 

The pleasures of Christmas: eating, eating, and eating! Whenever we travel to San Pedro Sula to visit my other half of the family, they greet us with banquets of exquisite Arab food. This time was not an exception. The motive for our trip was my cousin's new born baby's beautiful baptism. My godmother or "madrina" organized the whole event for her grandson and whenever you put my madrina's name with "celebration" in the same sentence, you can bet it's gonna be priceless. The moment I saw this baby I fell inlove with him. He was so serene and peaceful. He did not moan about everyone trying to hold him. Instead, he seemed to enjoy all of the attention. His older brother, who is turning three in January, is impossibly adorable too. Sometimes I wish I had a little brother...or maybe even better-a sister. 

Day 1 

 {Hotel Breakfast: Whole-wheat toast with fresh strawberry jam, mini cinnamon-raisin roll, a banana, watermelon, pineapple, cantaloupe, and a cup of coffee}

 {Lunch at the baptism: Jumbo shrimp, Fettuccine Alfredo with salmon, salad with mixed greens, green apple, cucumber, and pomegranate seeds...May I add, my godmother made ALL OF IT}

 {I could not stay away from the dessert table. Why choose one when I can have ALL OF THEM? (muahaha). I had a brownie, a lemon bar, a mini red velvet cupcake (not in the picture), and about a hundred yogurt covered raisins and pretzels (I could not stop. They were amazing)}

{For Dinner at my aunt's house that night we had "marmahon" also known as "couscous" with chicken, "hojas de uva" also known as "dolma", and salad}

Day 2

 {Hotel Breakfast round 2: Whole-wheat toast with fresh strawberry jam, fresh pineapple jam on the side, two cranberry-orange biscuits (one I ate afterwards so it's not in the picture), a small alfajor de dulce de leche, watermelon, pineapple, cantaloupe, and a cup of coffee}

 {Lunch at the "Club Arabe"'s all-you-can-eat Arab buffet: "Marmahon" or "couscous", chicken, "hojas de uva" or "dolmas", hummus with pita bread, and salad}

{Dessert table at the "Club Arabe"'s all-you-can-eat buffet: Pecan bar (I had two), banana bread, and strawberries with whipped cream (not in the picture)}

I'm not even sure my clothes fits anymore. And I know this doesn't end here. Christmas is coming! 

Little Things

It's crazy how a person's life can change in a matter of seconds. I have a strong feeling inside of me that tells me that God is in control. I may not understand why, but the loving bond that has spurred inside my family has filled me with hope. I swear I have the best family in the world. To any teenage girl out there, I promise it gets better. I can't imagine how Christmas this year will be like without my grandfather (nagging about how I'm too young to wear high heels), but whatever God has in store for me and my family, I know that we will be together. Nevertheless, I know my grandfather would like for us to smile through the season. Christmas is right around the corner!  

{Reading Divergent by Veronica Roth on a beautiful Sunday afternoon while being hugged by the wind and kissed by the sun}

{After finishing Divergent, I felt completely lost. Luckily, the next day my super mom surprised me with the next book of the trilogy, Insurgent}

{First batch of Christmas cookies for the season: Butter Lemon Cookies}

{Baking Chilenas de Dulce de Leche (Alfajores) as a Christmas gift for my family. They appear to have been drizzled by snow.}

{Improvised desert: a scoop of vanilla ice cream, sliced frozen strawberries, slivered almonds, and chocolate chips}

Guilty Pleasures

This week was just one of those weeks. My mom left on a trip to Argentina, leaving me basically steering the wheel of my entire household. On top of that, every teacher decided to assign projects, essays, and tests for the end of the quarter. Even worse, my physical condition was suffering from a slight female issue (if you know what I mean). As I'm sure you all have heard, STRESSED spelled backwards is DESSERTS, and consequently, like any other hormonal teenage girl I tend to binge eat and wipe out anything sweet you place in front of me-literally. But don't worry, I waited till Friday night to indulge on the devilish Hershey kisses I stole from my mother's closet since she wasn't here (oops). I have no regrets. 

{Stress reliever on a Friday night after a LONG week: Hershey's kisses}

{Family lunch at Ruby Tuesday's: New York Cheesecake and Double Chocolate Cake for dessert}

{Best gift from my mother's trip to Argentina: Havanna Alfajores}

Banana Bread

This week started off with my 16th birthday, followed by the most amazing and miraculous news I have ever received, and ended with a Honduras-Costa Rica soccer game on a Friday off from school. The bad news, however, is that i have a seven-page essay due on Monday and it is creeping on my conscience. Sometimes, all I need is a little reality break and spend some time being creative in the kitchen. On Thursday afternoon, I walked into my kitchen trying to look for something to treat my sweet tooth. I found a bunch of ripe bananas and what better way is there to save them than making banana bread? So I got to work and made one of my favorite banana cupcake recipes from the one and only Martha Stewart. However, I decided to make the bread extra special and added a few almonds and raisins to her original recipe.

Ingredients: 

• 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 ½ cups mashed bananas (about 4 ripe bananas)
• 2 large eggs
• ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp raisins
• 1 tbsp almonds 

Directions:

•          Preheat oven to 350 degrees
•          Mix together flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda & salt
•          In the center of the flour mixture, mix together butter, bananas, eggs, vanilla
•          Stir together, add cinnamon, chopped almonds, and raisins
•          Bake about 25-30 min. or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.
•      Remove from oven and wait approximately 10-15 minutes to remove it from the container you baked the bread in. 
•          Then, you can add cream cheese frosting (optional), Martha Stewart's honey-cinnamon frosting, or enjoy with a nice cup of warm coffee or tea

You can also make a shift to this recipe by adding 1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips instead of or along with the raisins and almonds. It's absolutely delightful.