Birthday Cake Blondies - Simple & Delicious Recipe

Hi lovely reader! If you follow me on Instagram @notexactlyplainjane you may have seen that I posted a Reel the other day of a Birthday Cake Blondie Cake that I made (check it out here). It turned out super cute and was really easy to make so I wanted to share the recipe with you! Funfetti, white chocolate, and rainbow sprinkles, what's not to love? Check it out below!

Ingredients
-Cooking Spray
-Baking Pans (I used 2 6-inch rounds and 1 8-inch round to make multiple "cakes")
-Parchment Paper
-3 cups All Purpose Flour
-1 1/2 tsp. Kosher Salt
-1 tsp. Baking Powder
-2 1/4 sticks butter (18 Tbsp), softened
-1 1/2 cups Granulated Sugar
-3/4 cup Packed Brown Sugar
-2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
-3 eggs
-2 1/4 cups white chocolate chips (I used the Nestle Funfetti morsels)
-1 cup Rainbow Sprinkles (or any color) + optional extra for decorating (I used 2 small shakers total to cover the sides)
-Icing (option, these are actually really moist so they don't necessarily "need it")

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease your pans with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper. In a bowl, combine the flour, salt, and baking powder.

2. In a larger bowl using a mixer, beat the butter and sugars until fluffy, then add the vanilla and eggs and beat until combined.

3. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture gradually and beat until combined. Then fold in the chocolate chips and 3/4 cup of the sprinkles.

4. Pour the batter into the pan(s) and bake until the edge are golden, about 30 minutes. Let cool & then decorate!

And Voila!

What's your favorite birthday treat to make for others? Xx

The Ultimate Baking Feat | French Macaron Recipe

Hello lovely reader! The time has officially come where I can say that I have attempted and succeeded in baking what is said to be one of the most difficult treats to master...the French Macaron. I have to be honest that I was slightly intimidated about attempting to create such an iconic and beloved sweet but after watching a few videos and reading through various recipes it really didn't seem that bad! The main challenge was finding a recipe that was not in grams or used a fahrenheit oven temperature. The one that I ended up using and am going to share with you today is from Food Network Magazine, I've also added a few of my own notes in italics.

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup almond flour
3 large egg whites, at room temperature (the room temp is important)
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup superfine sugar
2 to 3 drops of gel food color (whatever color you want your macarons to be)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract (I used almond)
Assorted fillings (I made a chocolate ganache and white chocolate ganache)


Recipe
Food Network calls for the some"special equipment" which you can see below. I do not have a convection oven so I set my regular oven to 300 degrees F. I also used parchment paper instead of silicone baking sheets and they turned out just fine.

Special Equipment: Oven with convection setting, 4 baking sheets, 3 silicone baking mats, Fine-mesh sieve, Pastry bag with 1/4-inch round tip

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F using the convection setting (I used a regular setting on an oven). Line 3 baking sheets with silicone mats (Or parchment paper). Measure the confectioners' sugar and almond flour by spooning them into measuring cups and leveling with a knife. Transfer to a bowl; whisk to combine.

2. Sift the sugar-almond flour mixture, a little at a time, through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, pressing with a rubber spatula to pass through as much as possible. It will take a while, and up to 2 tablespoons of coarse almond flour may be left; just toss it. (not gonna lie, this is probably the worst part of the whole process so once you get through this, you're golden)

3. Beat the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt with a mixer on medium speed until frothy. Increase the speed to medium high; gradually add the superfine sugar and beat until stiff and shiny, about 5 more minutes. (I actually ended up having to redo this step because I didn't let the mixture get stiff enough, if the mixture is too runny it won't have enough standup when you go to pipe the cookies, so be sure to be patient in this step and make sure you have stiff peaks)

4. Transfer the beaten egg whites to the bowl with the almond flour mixture. Draw a rubber spatula halfway through the mixture and fold until incorporated, giving the bowl a quarter turn with each fold. (This step and the one following are probably the most important because you don't want to smash all the air that you whipped into the egg whites out, so try to be delicate in your turns and mixing)

5. Add the food coloring and extract (see options on Food Networks post for flavors). Continue folding and turning, scraping down the bowl, until the batter is smooth and falls off the spatula in a thin flat ribbon, 2 to 3 minutes.

6. Transfer the batter to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4-inch round tip. Holding the bag vertically and close to the baking sheet, pipe 1 1/4-inch circles (24 per sheet). Firmly tap the baking sheets twice against the counter to release any air bubbles.

7. Let the cookies sit at room temperature until the tops are no longer sticky to the touch, 15 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the humidity. Slip another baking sheet under the first batch (a double baking sheet protects the cookies from the heat).

8. Bake the first batch until the cookies are shiny and rise 1/8 inch to form a "foot," about 20 minutes (mine only took about 15 minutes, so I would set a timer for maybe 10 min and keep an eye on them). Transfer to a rack to cool completely. Repeat, using a double sheet for each batch. Peel the cookies off the mats and sandwich with a thin layer of filling.

And voila!

Bringing My Favorite British Dessert Home | Baking Eton Mess

Hiya lovely reader! As some of you will know, last spring I spent some time in London. I absolutely loved it there and miss it so much! Before going I had various people "warn me" that the food is not the best, to which I was taken aback as it is one of the most culturally diverse places ever which would in turn translate to the food. Needless to say those people were wrong and I let them know. The options in London are endless and everything I had was great! From traditional pub fare to Mediterranean style food and Italian. One of the first nights I was there we went to dinner at a place called Hush in High Holborn and it was there that I was enlightened. For dessert I wanted to try something different, something I had never heard of or had, that ladies and gentleman was Eton Mess. This delight consists of berries, cream, and meringue and is so light and airy you float away. So fast forward five months and ever since being back, I have been trying to incorporate some of my favorite British dishes into my life, looking for recipes and cookbooks to learn from and searching for stores that carry some of the brands I came to love. One of the cookbooks I came across was "An American Girl in London" by Marissa Hermer. As a fan of Ladies of London I was familiar with Marissa and her story and eager to check out her book. So when I saw she had an Eton Mess recipe I had to give it a go!

The nice thing about this recipe is that it is quite simple. The trickiest part is making the meringues and after that you are just putting everything together! 
For the Meringues you will need:
-3 large egg whites at room temperature
-1 cup granulated sugar
-1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
-1 tablespoon strawberry jam
-Stand Mixer

So to make the meringues, 
-Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F & place parchment paper on 2 baking trays
-Next place the egg whites in the bowl of your stand mixer and whisk until soft peaks start forming. Then slowly add the sugar, about 1 tablespoon at a time and then add the cream of tartar. Continue whisking until the mixture has stiff peaks and is glossy and smooth, around 5 or 6 minutes. (I must say I felt very Great British Bakeoff OG while making the meringue. I'd like to think Paul and Mary would approve of my gloss)
-Once you've got your stiff peaks, carefully fold in the strawberry jam. (Marissa suggests taking out 1/4 of the meringue and folding it through that and then through the rest of it. She also added 4 drops of red food coloring to make the meringues pink which I chose to leave out.)

-Next, take 2 tablespoons and place six to eight 1/2-cup scoops of meringue onto the parchment paper and swirl each scoop to give it a peak. They will grow as they bake so leave space between them.

-Bake for 2 hours and then turn off the oven. Do not open it! As tempting as it may be, let them completely cool in the oven, otherwise they will crack. 

Now for the Eton Mess you will need: 
-1 cup whipping cream
-1 cup plain Greek yogurt
-1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped (can also use vanilla extract)
-1 teaspoon rose water (optional)
-1/4 cup icing sugar, sifted
-2 cups strawberries

To make the Eton Mess,
-Whisk the cream until thickened in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the yogurt until it is smooth and then fold through the whipped cream, vanilla, and icing sugar.
-Roughly chop the strawberries, saving a few for garnish

Now to put it all together,
-Break up the pieces of meringue and start layering the cream, strawberries, and meringue in bowls or glasses. If you have clear glasses, it can look really nice to see the layers!
-Repeat the layering as much as you want and then enjoy!

Have you ever made Eton Mess? Xx

All Things October | iPhone Snaps

Hi lovely reader! Here is a quick round-up of some of the things I got up to in the month of October!

Breakfast in bed. Tried the omelette in a mug "hack" and I must say I was quite impressed.

As seen on Instagram. Originally asked my Mom what she would caption this pic, her response, "I'm nuts about these boots"....clever lady she is.

Gameday. This was about 1/3 of the tailgating spread. Amazing.

Pumpkin carving is no joke. This guy gave me a workout!

Other little pumpkin friend. This one was my favorite. 

Prepping for all the trick-or-treaters! And saving some for later...

Ended October by celebrating my friends birthday on a rooftop. The weather was perfect and so were the cupcakes.

What did you do last month? Any impressive pumpkins or costumes??

Healthy Summer Sweet-Tooth Satisfier | Frozen Yogurt Bars

Hi lovely reader! One of my favorite things to do on a hot summer evening is drive about 5 minutes to my families favorite local ice cream spot. They have every flavor and topping imaginable from fresh strawberries and hot fudge to cinnamon apples and caramel. While this is not something I would ever stop doing completely, there are those days where I still have a craving for something cold and sweet but feel I should probably go for something a little bit more healthy. So this recipe that I am going to share with you is just that! I originally saw it on the back of a box of Honey Maid graham crackers and thought it looked quick, simple, and delicious so I gave it a go.

I was pleased with the end result, as was my family, and it has become my go to for when I get an after dinner hankering for a little dessert. I also like this recipe because it is extremely customizable, you can change the Greek yogurt flavors, the fruits, and add other mix ins such as mini chocolate chips, chocolate sauce, caramel, etc. I made strawberry chocolate chip ones and they were excellent! So follow this simple recipe and you will have some delicious fruity frozen yogurt bars!

You will need: 
-1 cup vanilla nonfat Greek yogurt (or whatever flavor you would like them to be)
-1 cup thawed frozen reduced-fact whipped topping
-1/2 cup sliced strawberries
-1/2 cup chopped bananas
-1/4 cup blueberries
-12 whole graham crackers

1. Chop up the fruits into fine pieces, depending on how big you would like the fruit chunks to be. Then spoon the fruit into a bowl and stir in the yogurt and whipped topping.

2. Line a pan of your choosing (for me I used two bread loaf pans) with aluminum foil with the foil ends extending over the sides. Break each graham cracker in half arrange them in the pan. Spoon the yogurt mixture on top of each half and then top it with the other half of the graham crackers. Repeat this until you have used all of your mixture, separating each laver of sandwiches with aluminum foil.

3. Freeze for 4 hours (it's okay to freeze them for longer, just be sure to let them sit out for a bit to thaw out some before serving). Then you are ready to enjoy!

Do you have a summer sweet tradition or a go to treat? Xx

"You're a Peach" | iPhone Snaps

Hiya lovely reader! Halfway through the week, keep on keepin' on. Here's what has joined my camera roll within the last few weeks.

Vanilla ice cream with bits of chocolate, fudge, and swirled caramel on a hot summer day.

A beautiful blue sky

A salad full of color and fresh ingredients

Loving these scrunchies!

One of my favorite nail polishes by elf

Good fortune, fingers crossed

Tiki time

Peachy keen

What have you been up to? Xx

Fruit, Fireworks, and a Follow | iPhone Snaps

Hi lovely reader, I hope you are having a sunny Sunday! It is absolutely pouring here, perfect day to get stuff done though. I apologize for the lack of posts, I have been out of town for about two weeks straight, but I do have some travel diaries coming your way soon! For today, I've scrolled through my Camera Roll in order to put together an ever classic iPhone Snaps post! So here's some insight into what I've been up to!

Belgian Waffle, Fresh Strawberries, and Powdered Sugar. Both photogenic and delicious!

If I do say so myself, I believe that I was gifted with the ability to wrap presents. I know some people dread it but I love it! 

Woke up to this one morning and was a bit excited (understatement). Samantha, if you're reading this, thank you so much and lots of love! Xx (Congrats on Latitude)

Still my fav

 My Fourth of July OOTD, as seen on Tumblr!

We went to my aunt's house, where tank racing is not a past time, it is a lifestyle. It is taken seriously, so fun though.

 The aftermath

I don't know how much of this kinda stuff I really believe in, but it is fun to "study your hand" and see if any of it matches up.

One of my co-workers love everything retro and is expecting a baby, so I got her this cute little picture frame and put an adorable little photo I found online. 

What's on your camera roll? Xx

Accurate Signs and the Perfect Manicure | iPhone Snaps

Hello lovely reader! Another week is here, let's make it a good one. Last week I did a fair share of fun things so naturally I took pics here and there and wanted to share them with you!

One day my mom and I enjoyed the nice weather and spent some time shopping outside. Of course sitting on a park bench enjoying a donut is also necessary when given the opportunity!

I love little signs like these, especially if they're accurate! (Which these are)

I've been curbing my afternoon sweet cravings with this greek yogurt. A perfect sweet treat that keeps you on track!

I absolutely love this! 

Most accurate. 

I've been wanting to get white nails for a while now, and if you follow me on tumblr, you will know that the other day I went and got a manicure. I'm kind of obsessed with how they turned out!

What have you been doing? Xx

Sunny Days and Summer Nights | iPhone Snaps

Hello lovely reader! Happy Monday, I'm sending you my energy to get through this week. Last week wasn't the best weather wise, so I'm hoping June brings some warm weather and sunshine. Here's what I've been up to,

Sun, strawberries, and a nice morning read. I started reading this book and if you are a fashion fanatic or interested in the industry, I highly recommend it! It's funny, informative, and inspiring. 

One of my goals for this summer is to learn to sew properly. So, I am making it happen, starting simple with a swing dress. I enjoy it and wish to be better at it, so hopefully this dress turns out nicely!

Feeling swish with a swirl cone on a summer night!

Celebrated Memorial Day with an afternoon BBQ.

Flower shopping with my mom to spruce up the gardens.

What have you been up to? Xx