Ahhh...Fall

It’s fall! Well…sort of. Sunday night was the first time since April that a chill rolled into my bedroom and I had to sleep under the covers. San Diego doesn’t get too much change between seasons, but hey, it’s something!

I absolutely love summer, but there’s something about fall that makes everything feel so…cozy. Red and orange color schemes have taken over Pinterest, people are losing their minds over Pumpkin Spice Latte’s and Pumpkin M&M’s, and an outfit that consists of leggings, and oversized sweater, boots, and a messy bun is acceptable again :]

Today’s post is kind of a random compilation of things I love and look forward to doing this fall!

-Playoff Baseball.

Did anyone really expect anything else to be at the top of this list? I’m pretty positive neither of my teams [Yankees & Padres] will be playing in the fall classic this year, but it makes my heart happy to know that I’ll be able to turn on the TV when I get home from work or school and baseball will be on. Unfortunately the rivals of my favorite teams did make it to October. That doesn’t mean I won’t be watching…I’ll just be rooting for the Red Sox and Dodgers to not win!

-Apple Beer.

I learned about Apple Beer/Cider [whatever it is] earlier this summer when I had it at a BBQ and liked it a lot. Since then, I’ve had it here and there…but I plan on fully embracing it this fall. I think one of the reasons I like it so much is because it reminds me of Manzanita which is apple soda…a staple in Mexican households! It’s like the grown-up boozier version of Manzanita! Both are worth checking out!   

-Salted Carmel Hot Chocolate.

Pumpkin Spice Latte’s can take a seat, my favorite seasonal drink from SBUX is the Salted Carmel Hot Chocolate! Heavenly is probably the best word I can use to describe the way it tastes. I don’t know enough coffee connoisseur approved adjectives to properly describe it…just take my word for it, it’s damn good.

-Abuelita’s Hot Chocolate.   

I you know, you knowwwwwww.

-Comfy Clothes.  

If you’re looking for a fashion blog…look elsewhere. I endorse leggings and sweats. I live in leggings. So I’m happy that it’s we’re in the season where it’s acceptable to wear them again! Oversized sweaters go well with leggings and adds to that comfort level. Put on some calf length boots and throw your hair in a messy bun and you’re good to go! Can’t forget about seats though! I have a large collection of sweats, they’re one of my favorite things to wear…around the house, to run a quick errand, head to school. Pretty much to do anything but go to work.

-Cinnamon Roll Crust Apple Pie.

I learned to make this like 2 years ago. It was pretty freaking delicious. Can’t wait to make it again :]

-Pumpkin Picking & Pumpkin Fudge.

So I’m from a small country-ish town in North San Diego county. It’s famous for its surrounding casinos…and that’s about it. The only time traffic gets crazy is in October when pretty much all of San Diego flocks here to pick pumpkins in the crazy awesome pumpkin patch Bates Nut Farm has…better known to the locals as Nate’s Butt Farm :] Haha. I actually haven’t picked pumpkins here for like 6 years, but I’m making it happen this year! Bates has like 20 different flavors of homemade fudge in their shop which is ridiculously rich and soooo good, but the best flavor is Pumpkin fudge which they only roll out every fall!

-Dia De Los Muertos.

It’s a Mexican holiday that honors and celebrates deceased relative and loved ones. I’m kind of infatuated with sugar skull art, and if I ever get courageous enough to get a tattoo, the first will definitely be a sugar skull and some roses. Old Town in San Diego has done this cool event thing for the last few Dia De Los Muertos and I really want to make it out this year!

Last But Certainly Not Least…

-SYTYCD Tour

One of my favorite things of the summer is So You Think you Can Dance. One of my favorite things of the fall is seeing the top 10 contestants on tour doing my favorite dances of the season. Amy, Jasmine, Nico, and Tucker were some of my favorites, but my #1 of the season was Aaron. He's such an incredible dancer anddd I might have fallen in love with him. I was so sure he was going to go from not making the cut [again] during the green mile to winning the whole competition. When they said Fik-Shun’s name as the winner, I immediately yelled “SHUT. UP.” I couldn’t believe Aaron lost. It broke my heart and I am still not over it. If I make to the tour this year, you can bet everything in your pocket that I will camp out for hours after the show for a shot to meet him!

<3

That’s it folks. Or at least everything that came to mind when I made this list. What do you think of it? What’s on your list? Anything missing that should be on mine?

P.S. I'm not one who uses the word "cozy" regularly...so don't judge me based on my use of it in today's blog. Ha. 

P.S.S. I'm gonna mention that I don't own any of these images, all were stolen from google and pinterest...please don't sue me.

Dark Chocolate Merlot Cookies

Remember when I made chocolaty goodness like a month ago? Finally blogging about it :]

I help my mom clean a house every other weekend and the lady we work for has a cabinet full of wine! She is super sweet and gives us a few bottles every now and then, but unfortunately it's merlot and I can't really put down any wine other than muscato.

A few weeks ago she gave us like 6 bottles of merlot and 2 of chardonnay so I'm kind of scrambling to find recipes to use the wine in!

Dark chocolate merlot cookies were on the list. I haven't posted a recipe in a while so for anyone that's new to reading my blog, you should know I'm hopeless in the kitchen, so every time I try a recipe, it legit is a disaster waiting to happen.

I found this recipe on pinterest but tweaked it a little...I made just under 3 dozen late one night and among a family of 4 and within 30 hours they were gone, so I'm gonna say this was a success.

What you'll need:

1.5 cups of all purpose flour

1 cup of cocoa powder

1.5 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 teaspoon of baking powder

0.5 cups of softened butter

0.5 cups of granulated sugar

1 cup of brown sugar

2 medium sized eggs

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

0.5 cups of merlot

8 ounces of good quality of dark chocolate

-Pre-heat the oven at 375.

-Mix together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder, and set to the side. 

My favorite part of baking other than eating the final result is mixing the dry stuff. I think it looks so pretty! Hahaha.

-Mix together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and butter until the mixture is "light and fluffy" and then mix in the eggs, vanilla extract, and merlot. 

As a rookie baker (...or whatever you'd call me) the "wet" mixtures always make me a little weary and am convinced that I will end up with some kind of sweet soup concoction that I'll have to throw out instead of in this case chocolatey goodness. I'm still working on trusting all these internet recipes, because I don't know what stuff is supposed to look like. 

-Add the dry ingredients you've already mixed into this wet batter and stir together. 

-Chop up your good quality chocolate and mix it into your batter.

                                           

                                                        

Originally, I purchased that Godiva bar thinking it'd be enough, but it wasn't so I ran over to Sprouts and grabbed what I thought was dark chocolate...instead I purchased this:

I didn't realize it had hazelnut and dried currants [I'm gonna pretend you all know what that is because I have no clue] in it, but it gave the cookie some extra flavor and some crunch.

Marty Mess-up: cocoa powder, and then decided that it'd be too rich so I added more flour, and then decided it had lost the sweetness of it so I added a little cinnamon sugar mix. Don't add any of the extra stuff. Stick to the numbers and steps above and you'll be good to go. 

-Butter a cookie sheet [I used a cake pan because for some reason I thought the batter would run some...it didn't] and dollop about 1 teaspoon of the batter about 2 inches apart. I was kind of messy with this so do whatever works for you

-Bake at 325 degrees for about 12 minutes or until they set but are still soft. Pull the sheet, let it cool. I had some left over chocolate crumbs, so I sprinkled that over the cookies as they were cooling.

Once they're done...enjoy!

If you follow this recipe, or the original one...let me know how yours turn out!

Easter Sunday

Easter is one of my favorite holidays. My family and a lot of our friends get together at a lake/campground about an hour north called Lake Skinner and have such a fun filled day.

As with any celebration, there is always SO. MUCH. FOOD. Our potluck/buffet/whateveryouwannacallit consisted of carne asada, chicken, hot dogs, lots of pasta, salad, rice, beans, and a bunch of dessert…including my 1^st ever from scratch carrot cake cupcackes [recipe will be posted later this week!]

We do so much during the day and it usually pans out like this:

11:00-2:00 Grub on food. No pictures of that…it isn't very pretty.

2:00-3:00/4:00 Volleyball tournament.

Our net kept sliding down...duct tape to the rescue!

4:00-5:00 Potato sack races, Egg balance & dizzy bat, Three-legged race.

5:00-sunset Easter egg hunt, four and confetti egg bomb war!

our easter egg hunters!

sweet action shot!

minus her dodger jacket...super cute little girl

Such an awesome day! I always have so much fun. How was your easter?

Brunch Deliciousness

O.M.F.G.

I am indebted to the person who created this recipe for life. 

I came across this on Pinterest like 2 months ago and it's all I've been able to think about since then. 

I decided to make it for my friend Holley and I for brunch Sunday morning after I realized I'd have left over brie cheese from that appetizer I had the day before. 

Roasted Strawberries, Chocolate, and Grilled Brie Cheese

Ingredients: Makes 2 sandwiches

- 4 slices of whatever bread you prefer. [I used 12 grain. You should probably stay away from sourdough, I can't imagine that would taste very good.]

- brie cheese. [I have no idea how much I used, the original recipe calls for 2-3 ounces]

-8 strawberries, quartered.

-1/2 tsp of canola oil. [Confession: I have no idea how much I used, I just filled the cap of the oil when that part of the recipe called for it.]

-1 pinch of salt.

-2 tbsp of butter.

Directions:

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.

Wash and quarter the strawberries and throw them in a bowl. Mix them with the canola oil and pinch of salt. Spread them across a banking sheet and place in the oven at 250 degrees for 20 minutes.  

Marty Messup: I wanted to see what the strawberries looked like mid-roast so I opened the oven and within seconds the fire alarm went off. Crap. It normally wouldn't have been a big deal except Holley has 2 boston terriers and the alarm pretty much scarred them for life. I seriously got death stared from them. Oops. Sorry Addie & Mabel!

Anyways, next step...once they're done roasting [idk if roasting is the right word, but it is what it is...] pull the sheet out of the oven and let them cool. 

In the mean time, butter one side of each slice of bread and place two on the baking sheet, butter side down. Stack the brie cheese, chocolate, and strawberries for as many layers as you'd like and then place the other two buttered bread slices on top.

Left: Milk Chocolate for Holley         Right: Dark Chocolate for Marty

So I didn't do this next part like the recipe or making a traditional grilled cheese calls, instead of flipping it over on a skillet, I just threw the sandwiched onto the baking sheet and slid that back in the oven and let it bake [? i guess...] at 250 degrees for like 15 minutes until the cheese melted.

Even though I already posted a picture of the finished product, it doesn't hurt to look at it again because it was oh. so. delicious. It was perfectly paired with a mimosa and some leftover [un-roasted] strawberries.