Because who WOULDN’T want their oven at 450 on an 85 degree day?

Sunday was hot. Saturday was hot, too. Today is 90 degrees. 

Might I remind you that it’s APRIL!? In NEW ENGLAND? What is going on here kids?

Anyway, the obvious solution to the heat problem is to bake. And boil. Cuz that’ll cool ya right off. Which is what I chose to do on Sunday. On waking up and checking the blogs, Pioneer Woman‘s adventures with Smitten Kitchen led to… Pretzels! I’d never made them before and they seemed like a fun project (minus, ya know, the HEAT). So I zipped over to the grocery store for some yeast and spent the next few hours proofing yeast and dough, boiling pretzels, and baking on salt and sugar. Then I spent another hour stuffing my face (although luckily there were some hungry boys milling around the house that helped)! Now THAT’S a Sunday!

Mmmm, yeasty!

Boiling those bad boys!

Topping set up. Note to self: drink less Coke Zero while cooking.

After boiling, pre-topping.

These were the cinnamon-sugar ones. I just substituted cinnamon sugar for the salt after brushing with egg. They were great!

Salty and delicious.

For the full recipe, click here!

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Chocolate Peanut Butter “Truffles”!!

As alluded to in my last post, I tried my hand once again this weekend at cake pops… this time, of the non-cute-furry-or-otherwise-be-feathered-variety. Just regular old delicious cake pops. Also, without the sticks! By the end anyway. I made a beautiful white cake on Saturday let it cool overnight, only to mush it all up and mix in half a can of chocolate frosting on Sunday. Yum! Used less frosting this time and the texture of the balls was a little better… tee hee. I went with regular old chocolate flavored chocolate, and then got some peanut butter flavored chocolate to mix it up:

I used the sticks to dunk the balls, but then removed them afterward so they could sit nice and pretty on the counter to decorate and plate.

Please notice my other addictions in the background... This American Life streaming from NPR and Coke Zero. Really this was a perfect afternoon!

With my newly-acquired squeezie bottle I drizzled the peanut butter flavor over the coated cake bites, and beautified them as much as possible. Then I mixed it up a little and drizzled chocolate over peanut butter. Either way, they came out looking great and tasting even better.

And let me just say that eating these was a lot easier than eating all the little lambs and bunnies and chicks from the previous cake pop adventure. The boy agreed, and everyone at work also seemed to love these little guys. It made working on Patriots Day/Marathon Monday a little bit easier. (Still not easy, but ya know, take what you can get and all…).

Nom nom nom nom nom...

Thanks again, Bakerella, for bringing these tasty little treats into my life. And onto my thighs 🙂 Until next time…

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Introductions

I’m a twenty-something girl living life in Boston, dealing with a boyfriend, dog, friends, clothes, food, money and trying to stay in shape. I work in publishing and miss living and working in New York City.

Cocoa and coffee sort of captures my personality (personalities? not that I’m schizo or anything!). Sometimes I think of myself as a quiet, introspective, sit-by-the-fireplace and read, sip cocoa, and pet the dog kind of (countryside) girl. And sometimes I’m a career-minded, fashionable (I try…), girly, smarty pants (read: know-it-all) who requires daily injections of coffee to keep me going (city girl).

And aside from having internet pseudonyms that could pass for stripper names, I’m just a (relatively) normal girl, just trying to survive my twenties!

Who are you?

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