We're juicin'.

Today, I convinced Mr. D we needed a juicer. Truthfully, it didn't take much convincing. We need to eat healthier, and we both know it. We typically eat pretty healthy, but we've kind of fallen off the bandwagon recently. Too much sugar. Too much processed food. Too much caffeine. And we're starting to notice it. We're sluggish, and the migraines I've gotten since I was 4 years old seem to be getting worse.

So we're juicing. We made three different types of juice tonight: kale, carrot, and beet. We don't plan to replace all of our meals with juice. (We're not crazy.) But we are going to try replacing some of them and just generally eating more whole foods.

I'll keep you posted. 

In case you hadn't gotten me anything yet.

Leopard print and a few other goodies.

Zara leopard print flats ($69.90) / Madewell sweater ($85.00) / NARS blush ($39) / Joy the Baker Cookbook ($19.99) / Timex watch ($60) / Zara leopard print boots ($129) / Zara suede shopper ($99.90) 

I'm a liar.

Ok, here's the thing—I didn't mean to stop blogging for so long. It just happened. I didn't purposefully lie to you. But I've found the solution to my blogging woes. Pinterest! Duh. Why didn't I think of it sooner? You can follow me here. I can spend hours on Pinterest, so I'm certain the inspiration will be endless.

P.S. This cupcake looks deeelicious. It's the Frosted Candy Bar Stuffed Cookie Cup from Kevin & Amanda. Yum.   

Fava bean soup.

Last Saturday, Mr. D and I went to the Carrboro Farmers' Market. It was pretty fantastic.

I know, I know. The Des Moines Farmers' Market is also fantastic, but it's a different fantastic. The focus is less on produce and more on having fun and—let's face it—eating breakfast burritos and pizzas. (Iowa is home to the biggest state fair, so it knows how to do large gatherings.)

The Carrboro Farmers' Market, however, is all about the veggies, and Mr. D and I grabbed a bunch. Last night, I made fava bean soup out of our collection. I used Anne Burrell's recipe (minus the bacon), and I must say it turned out pretty scrumptious. I definitely recommend it.

Cake Creations

Coco Cakes

Mr. D doesn't like cake. I knoooooow. Who doesn't like cake?!? Only crazies and people who prefer dinner over dessert. Like I said, crazies.

Needless to say, we never have cake at our house, and I'm thinking that needs to change. I just stumbled across Lyndsay of Coco Cake (via Poppytalk). I'm pretty sure she's a cake genius. GENIUS.

And now all I can think about is chocolate cake ... and how we don't have any at our house ...

Chewy Molasses Chocolate Chip Cookies

After the Packers lost, I drowned my sorrows in baking. It was fun. The baking was fun, not the Packers losing. That was heart wrenching.

Yes, this photo is a little out of focus. I'm hoping to get a macro lens soon, and I promise to take lots of in-focus pics then.

I made Joy the Baker's Chewy Molasses Chocolate Chip Cookies. (Do you know Joy? She's aaaamazing.) She based her recipe off of Alton Brown's recipe, and Alton Brown is also amazing. Duh. So that means these cookies are without-a-doubt amazing.

In the interest of full disclosure, I didn't quite make this recipe correctly. (What? I was upset. Aaron Rodger's has a concussion. Ouch.)

I only had one stick of butter, and the recipe calls for two. The recipe also calls for an egg yolk. My distraught mind read "yolk" as "white," and added the wrong part of the egg. Oops. But even with those mistakes, these turned out great. I can't even imagine how fantastic they are when the right ingredients are added.

You should make them right now. Go.

Joy the Baker's recipe:
Chewy Molasses Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 sticks unsalted butter
2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons bread flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup, plus 1 teaspoon dark molasses, not blackstrap
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups dark chocolate chips or chunks
sea salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom medium saucepan over low heat. Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda, and set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, mix the granulated sugar and molasses until no large molasses clumps remain.

Pour the melted butter in the mixer's bowl. Add the sugar/molasses mixture. Cream the butter and sugar on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Add the egg, yolk, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Stir in chocolate chips.

Chill the dough for about 20 minutes, then scoop onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Lightly sprinkly each dough ball with a few flecks of sea salt.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Gift Idea: Peace of Cake Mold

Over at fredflare.com, you can come up with a lot of neat gift ideas, but this silicon bake pan is my favorite. You can have your cake and spread peace, too. Creative, huh? It even comes with a tie-dye cake recipe. So maybe I'll just have to get this for myself instead. Don't tell anyone.

I also love that.

And that.

And this.

Grandma's Amazing Rolls

My grandma has been making these rolls for as long as I can remember—before I was born, I'm sure. They are my absolute favorite rolls. And if you add a little bit of cinnamon and sugar to them, they're my absolute favorite cinnamon rolls. 

Two years ago I asked for the recipe, and I tried to make them. I tried. I really, really tried. I tried so hard I was convinced Grandma lied about the recipe. I just knew my sweet, honest grandmother had lied to me. She didn't want her granddaughter upstaging her baking prowess—you know how grandmas can be. 

Of course, she didn't lie. And truth be told, the recipe isn't that hard. You just can't overwork the dough. I have to set the timer so I don't get carried away. Do that, and you're golden. 

Grandma's Amazing Rolls 

1 ¼ cup scalded milk

1 cup melted butter

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 packages or 4 ½ teaspoons yeast 

¼ cup warm water

6 to 7 cups all-purpose flour

4 beaten eggs

Combine scalded milk, butter, sugar, and salt. Cool mixture to luke warm. 

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Combine with cool milk mixture. 

Add eggs and ½ of the flour. Beat well. Add enough of remaining flour to make soft dough. 

Turn on lightly floured board and knead until smooth. (This is where I set the timer for about 8 minutes.) Place in warm greased, butter bowl. Brush with melted butter. Cover and let rise in warm place. (I usually warm the oven to 175 degrees, turn it off, and place the bowl inside.) 

After two hours, turn out the bowl on a floured surface. Divide in half and roll out. (My grandma always makes them into crescents, but I'm pretty sure you can shape them into whatever your heart desires.)

Bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. Enjoy!