Why I love Mumford and Sons

~Love it will not betray you, dismay or enslave you, it will set you free.~



First of all, I've just discovered them..and their music is wonderful. I love the banjo playing and the upbeat tunes as well as their softer serenades.

Second of all, their lyrics are so inspiring. This song is currently my favorite..it reminds me that I have a life of my own that I need to focus on and stay strong through moments of distress:

Mini Teal cupcakes with Nutella Buttercream Frosting

It was yet another birthday at my work and I decided to make something other than my usual Linzer cookies..something simpler but equally delicious.

I used a basic boxed white cake mix for my cupcakes and added equal parts blue and green food dye to color them a nice teal color.




The baked mini cupcakes.



To make the Nutella Buttercream frosting:

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks of unsalted softened butter
• 2 tablespoons of milk
• 3 cups of powdered sugar
• 1 cup of Nutella

Mix the butter with an electric mixer until it's smooth and creamy. Then mix in the Nutella until it's a fluffy consistency. Add in the milk.

Next, add in the powdered sugar, cup by cup, until it reaches the desired "frosting-like" consistency. Spread on your cupcakes and enjoy!



You can add sprinkles as a finishing touch!

Doe Deere's 29th!

A friend's bird perching on my head..haha.

This post is long overdue. I went to her picnic over a week ago. Sorry guys! I've been so caught up with work.

On Satuday June 26th, I trekked over to the central park conservatory garden with my friend Kristina to meet my one of my idols..Xenia (aka Doe Deere www.doedeereblogazine.com).

It was disgustingly hot...but I had planned a comfortable and adorable rose themed outfit since the party was rose themed.

I wore a white poofy dress that kinda resembles a Marilyn Monroe dress..except with black flower embroidery. On my head I wore a black headband with a giant red rose attached with black electrical tape. Yes..I'm weird and crafty like that..haha.






Kristina and I.



Mark, Xenia's husband..getting a unicorn henna tattoo.



Doe opening my present..a handmade charm bracelet!



Doe/ Xenia and I.



Pretty lighting.



Doe's sister..Kat..getting a citrus fruit henna tattoo.



Smelling the beautiful flowers!

Bumbled

“Aerodynamically, the bumble bee shouldn’t be able to fly. But the bumble bee doesn’t know it, so it goes on flying anyway.“

~Mary Kay Ash

Inspiration from Tea

My mother's blooming teas.



And a little saying you can read while you're sipping.

Strawberry Shortbread Linzer Cookies

I was involved in throwing a baby shower at work and was eager to make some cookies. I didn't want to make the ordinary chocolate chip, sugar, or even just plain old cupcakes, so I decided to look through a cookbook for something cute and new.

I decided on Martha Stewart's Pecan Linzer cookies. However, I realized I didn't want to use nuts, so I used a simple shortbread recipe instead. Her recipe then became a mere template for my cookie design.

Here's how I made the shortbread. It's pretty simple:

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

2 room temperature sticks of butter (I used salted because it was what I had. The recipe called for unsalted and then advised to add salt as well..so I figured it wouldn't matter)

1/2 cup confectioners sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

To make the dough:

With an electric mixer or by hand, beat the butter until it becomes a creamy texture. Then add the sugar and vanilla and beat until well blended. Next, add the flour gradually until it becomes a dough like mixture.

Form the dough into a ball and either place it in a ziploc bag or cover it with cling wrap. Then place it in the fridge for at least an hour. My house was rather hot and muggy, so I ended up putting it in longer.

To form the cookies:

Lightly flour a surface. Then roll out the dough until it's about 1/4 inch thick. Using a cookie cutter shape of your choice (I used hearts), cut out shapes and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Take either a smaller cookie cutter or a bottle cap (I didn't have a smaller cutter so the cap of the vanilla extract worked just fine) and press it in the center of half of the cookies to create a hole.

Bake the cookies in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until golden brown.

To assemble the cookies:

You will need about a 1/2 cup of jam (I used strawberry) for the filling.





Separate the cookies with the holes in them and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Then spread the jam on the cookies without the holes. Gently place the cookies with the holes in them on top of the cookies spread with jam to make sandwiches. For an accent, you can place a tiny heart shaped sprinkle in the center of the jam.



The shortbread is so light and buttery it just about melts in your mouth. Enjoy these cookies with a nice cup of tea or all on their delicious lonesome!

And I have learned that even landlocked lovers yearn for the sea like navy men..

He's the third one from the left.




Blue angels flying overhead.



After shaking the hand of Joe Biden and many others, he receives his diplomas.




Last week my big brother and the USNA class of 2010 became naval officers.

More new photos at my Flickr.