To St Louis and Back

Three days are never enough for a weekend, let alone a trip to another country. Last week my family and I packed our bags and hopped on a flight to the beautiful city of St. Louis, Missouri. The reason? My genius brother's graduation from college. The trip was full of delicious indulgences, lots and lots of shopping, and family quality time. Seeing my brother (and my uncle who lives in D.C. popped in the picture too) for three days was not enough. Living thousands of kilometers away is definitely hard. You miss so much of each other's lives, moments like an honors reception at school or a ballet recital where you're the lead role...*sigh*. So when we are finally together, we make the most out of our time. 

{Possibly one of the best restaurants in St. Louis. Mcallister's Sandwiches, Soups, and Salads. I ordered half a berry pecan salad and half a "The Veggie" sandwich and the most amazing strawberry lemonade.}

{Almond milk cappuccino at Picasso's} 

{The most beautiful vintage coffee shop in Main Street. Picasso's (if you've watched The Voice, you'll know that Caroline Glaser began to sing in this place} 

{Walgreen's finds: Yogurt covered pretzels, Yogurt covered raisins, and possibly the best white chocolate ever--Lindt's white chocolate truffles}

{The St. Louis Ballet} 

{Shopping for all of the pretty equipment a ballerina needs}

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.}

Breakfast Inspiration

Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. You can mask a delicious dessert and call it 'breakfast'. With my sweet tooth, I most definitely need to find a way to make something that feeds my sweet tooth but is healthy at the same time. On my plate every morning you will most likely see waffles, french toast, pancakes, cereal, or yogurt. These are a few of my favorite breakfast combinations. 

{Typical yet yummy breakfast: Special K cereal, Almond Breeze unsweetened almond milk, banana, whole wheat toast with Smucker's Sugar Free Apricot Jelly}

{Yoplait Light Strawberry Yogurt topped with kiwi, strawberries, and coffee with whole wheat cookies on the side}

{Homemade Whole Wheat Almond Milk French Toast topped with banana, strawberries, and honey}

{Yoplait Light Strawberry Yogurt topped with banana and slivered almonds, coffee with oatmeal cookies on the side}

{Yoplait Light Strawberry Yogurt topped with Komplete cereal and peaches. Scrambled egg whites with spinach, tomato, and bell pepper on the side}

{Homemade Belgian waffles topped with banana and strawberries with chamomille tea on the side}

{Attempt to homemade Egg Mcmuffins with a healthy twist. Whole-wheat bun with a mini egg omelet with spinach, tomato, and bell pepper; Kraft yellow American cheese, and ketchup. Mango and watermelon on the side.}

{Yoplait Vanilla Greek Yogurt topped with kiwi and whole-wheat toast with peanut butter and jelly on the side}

{Pancakes topped with strawberries and banana with almond milk capuccino on the side}

{Macheteadas topped with strawberries and powdered sugar}

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}

Childhood Reminiscences

As a child, waking up to the smell of "Macheteadas" or "Fritas" on a Sunday morning was the best feeling in the world. Whenever my friends slept over, we were absolutely having Macheteadas for breakfast the next day. My grandma passed on this typical honduran recipe to my mother and I recently attempted to learn how to make them. Making them is a step by step process, but  I can assure you it's not hard. When we were younger, my brothers and I used to make all sorts of deliciously, unhealthy, sugary inventions to top our Macheteadas. Some of these inventions were the following:

• sweetened condensed milk
• sweetened condensed milk and chocolate syrup
• whipped cream
• honey or maple syrup
• dulce de leche or caramel (not as easy to find back then as it is now)
• powdered sugar and strawberries (my personal favorite)**

Macheteadas

Makes approximately: 12 macheteadas

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp oil
• approximately 1/4 cup milk

Directions:

1. Mix all of the dry ingredients together. 
2. Add the egg and oil to the dry ingredients. Mix them well. 
3. Slowly add in the milk until a firm dough is formed. 
4. Let the dough rest for about 10 minutes. Then divide the dough and make 12 even balls. 
5. Use a roller to stretch out the balls one at a time, adding flour regularly so that the dough does not stick. 
6. Cut 3 lines on the flattened dough. Then add to a heated skillet with oil
7. Let the dough fry until golden. After they are well cooked, remove them from the skillet and let them rest on paper towels to reduce the excess of oil on them. 
8. Serve and enjoy! 

Little Things

As an OCD victim, I have found it hard to take my time to meditate on what life has offered me. Juggling between my sophomore year, ballet lessons, piano lessons, and social encounters has unfortunately limited my time writing on my blog. However, I am glad to come back and share some of the things currently making me happy, such as: homemade blueberry muffins, a romantically beautiful bouquet of flowers, Divergent by Veronica Roth, a simple yet exquisitely healthy salad, and the perfect little coffee treat to end the week just right. 

(If you're following me on twitter, these pictures might be a little familiar to you). 

{Last Sunday's baking: Mouth-watering homemade mini blueberry muffins}

{A sparkling Saturday night dinner accompanied by a beautiful center piece and a Louis Vuitton handbag}

{New addiction: Divergent from Veronica Roth's saga}

{Healthy, delightful, and homemade salad during lunch at school: Spinach, cucumber, edamame, strawberries, and Balsamic Vinaigrette}

{Homemade Almond Milk Cappuccino & Pirouline Chocolate Hazelnut wafers on a rainy Friday afternoon}