Flourless Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Crunchy, chewy, and delicious. An all-time granny classic and one of my favorite comfort foods in the world-Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. Flipping through recipe books and scrolling down through my Pinterest page, I made up my mind and decided to bake a batch of homemade oatmeal raisin cookies. To my surprise, these cookies were extremely easy to make. Even better, according to Chocolate Covered Katie, each cookie has only about 50 calories (guilt-free, gluten-free). These are perfect for anytime you're craving something sweet and you want it fast, yet you don't want to feel the thousand-calorie guilt afterwards. They are also perfect for improvised desserts, midnight snacking, or simply as a side to a warm, soothing cup of coffee.

Flourless Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Baking Time: Approximately 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees
This recipe makes about 10-12 tablespoon sized cookies.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp and 2 tsp white granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tbsp raisins
• 1 tbsp oil or melted butter
• 1-2 tbsp milk of choice (start with 1. I used almond milk)

Directions:

In an electric mixer, blend together the dry ingredients. Then, add in the butter and milk. Form into tablespoon-sized cookies and place them on a greased cooking sheet. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes at 350 degrees F. 

 

Little Things

Starting a new school year can be stressful; however, I am so excited about everything this year has to offer to my sophomore  class. Some of my goals this year are the following: 

1. Learn how to drive (since I'm turning 16 soon)

2. Get good grades (I usually have a 99% year average cause I'm cool like that)

3. Make new friends and create tighter bonds with my family and friends 

4. Don't stress; enjoy life as much as possible

5. I have to come up with a few more...

This post is a round up of my favorites from last weekend (the fro-yo and the first outfit) and this weekend (the second outfit and the dressing).

{Quick Fro-Yo date with my mom. Original flavor topped with blueberries.}

{Sushi night out with friends. I wore a Forever21 blouse and jeans, Old Navy brown cardigan, LOFT necklace.}

{Saturday's outfit: Forever21 tshirt and jeans, H&M jean jacket, vintage necklace}

{Dinner date with my amazing brother. Currently obsessed with this dressing. Sugar Free Raspberry Vinaigrette}

Back To School: Cosmetic Bag

I am a bit of a control freak. I like to always be prepared for anything, get things done ahead of time, etc, etc. So as you can imagine I already prepared my cosmetic bag for the first day back to school. All of these things make life so much easier for me at school. The solution to a sweaty P.E. class, a bad cold, bad cramps, a bad hair day, and even a bad breath can be found in my beautiful Forever21 cosmetic bag. 

My back to school cosmetic bag consists of the following: 

• Hand moisturizing cream {Bath & Body Works Cherry Blossom}
• Splash {Bath & Body Works Cherry Blossom}
• Hand Sanitizer {Bath & Body Works Vanilla Berry Sorbet}
• Lip Balm {Burt's Bees Natural Beeswax Lip Balm} 
• Nail Files {Forever21}
• Bobby Pins
• Hair Ties 
• Blotting Papers {Up&Up Oil-Absorbing Sheets}
• Ibuprofen Pills {Advil}
• Kleenex Carry-Along Pack
• Breath Mints {Altoids}
• Gum {Eclipse}

{Lip balm, hand moisturizing cream, splash, hand sanitizer, nail files, bobby pins, hair ties, blotting papers}

 

{Ibuprofen, Kleenex Carry-Along Pack}

{Breath Mints & Gum}

Summer Farewell

I am devastated to inform you that school is sadly right around the corner; I can count the remaining days of my summer with one hand. The moment I was dreading, the last weekend of the whole summer, finally came. This Saturday consisted of spending quality time with my family, just like usual, followed by an amazing night out with friends. The get-together with my friends was full of smiles and laughter. It felt so good to see all of the familiar faces I haven't seen in two and a half months. I guess going back to school won't be as bad as it seems after all. 

I decided to wear a mint peplum shirt with skinny navy blue pants, and dressed it up with a chain collar. I also decided to go low on the make up and only applied a layer of foundation and a bit of blush. Then I applied a lower lash line with a pencil eye liner, a semi-winged line on the upper lash with a liquid eye liner, and a layer of mascara.  

{Forever21 peplum shirt, necklace, and handbag, H&M navy blue pants, ALDO shoes}

{Semi-winged eyeliner, lower lash eyeliner, and a layer of mascara}

But the party didn't end on Saturday night's bash. The next day, Sunday, was full of more quality time with family and friends. We celebrated my brother's 21st birthday at home with a delicious tipical Honduran meal ("pinchos" or beef and pork skewers, refried beans, fried plantain, pico de gallo, sour cream, cheese, guacamole, salsa, and corn tortillas). We were so stuffed, but as I always say, "there is ALWAYS room for dessert." We sang "happy birthday," my brother made a wish as he blew out the candles, and we enjoyed an exquisite vanilla cake with dulce de leche filling and frosting (my choice, of course) from my favorite bakery. I decided to wear a pair of mint pants with a tucked in blouse and cream-colored flats. Today I also decided to go low on make up and just added a layer of foundation to cover up the bags underneath my eyes from the day before and a layer of mascara to make my eyes pop.

{H&M mint pants and blouse, Nine West shoes, Forever21 handbag}

Warm & Windy

Today was one of those hot summer days that just decide to surprise you by sending a wave of wind your way. I personally love these kind of days. For today's outfit I decided to wear a casual pair of denim shorts with a pretty pastel-colored blouse. I decided to dress the outfit up with a beautiful necklace with a ray of pastels, but dress it down with a pair of pink Ked's. I also carried around this distressed jean button-down shirt for the moments where the wind decided to hit me. Finally, I topped the outfit with a super tall ponytail, grabbed my sunglasses, and was out the door. This was a fresh, casually polished look for today's summer sun.  

{American Eagle denim shorts, Zara blouse, Forever21 denim button-down, ALDO necklace & earrings, pink Ked's}

Little Things

This week I came to the conclusion that I am deeply and truly blessed. I realized that sometimes our worries are really insignificant and yet we feel like the world is crashing down on us while in reality we have a million reasons to be thankful. Having a family that loves and cares for me, a bed to sleep in, clothes to wear, food to eat, and even waking up every single morning with a brand new opportunity are some of the many things I am thankful for. Despite everything, I am so thankful that I have a family that sticks together through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, and so on. Having only two weeks left of summer vacation, I am so excited for this weekend. This weekend I will be having a little getaway road trip with my father to surprise my cousin (who lives miles and miles away and I hardly see her) on her birthday. I can't wait for my aunt's homemade exquisite Arab food, babysitting my angel-like yet mischievously adorable cousins, and spending one-on-one time with my daddy.

{Target $1 reminder notes}

{Essie Bahama Mama nail polish}

{Homemade Chicken and Spinach Lasagna}

{Forever21 LOVE ring}

Vanilla Caramel Flan

This is by far one of the best flans I have ever tasted. This is a no-brainer if you wanna impress someone with a classic, simple dessert. I made this once for a Father's Day lunch and it was gone in literally 5 minutes. Everyone went back for second slices, and my father, the celebrated man of that day, went back for a third slice. Tonight for dinner, with one of my brother's friend as our guest, we made a Chicken Spinach Lasagna, a side salad, and this delicious flan for dessert. The "Mmm's" around the table were endless, and once again, 6 of us ate the whole thing. I promise you'll be surprised by the flan's moist, decadent texture and its rich, sweet taste.

Vanilla Caramel Flan
Baking Time: Approximately 1 to 1 and a half hours at 350 degrees

Ingredients: 

• 1 can of evaporated milk
• 1 can of sweetened condensed milk
• 5 eggs
• 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
• 1 cup of sugar

Directions:

1. Blend together in an electric blender the evaporated milk, the sweetened condensed milk, the eggs, and the vanilla. 
2. Separately, in a sauce pan on medium-high heat, melt the cup of sugar until it dissolves completely and makes a caramel. BE CAREFUL. It can easily burn.
3. In an oven safe pan, add the caramel and make sure it spreads all through the bottom of the pan. BE CAREFUL, it will be very hot. 
4. Then, add the rest of the mixture (eggs, milks, and vanilla) on top of the caramel. 
5. Place the pan with the batter on another container half-full with water (This is called bain-marie in French or baño maria in Spanish).
6. Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
7. Remove from heat and let cool before removing the flan from the pan. Once you have removed the flan from the pan, place it in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving.