Weekend Baking Adventure... Saturday Edition!

This weekend I am moving onto the breads. I have come across this particular recipe a couple times in the past year and I decide it was about time I took it out of the "Things to Bake" folder into the "Things that Worked Out!" folder instead.

TaDa!!

I have adapted my recipe mainly from two different sites I found it on. The first site was The Pioneer Woman. The version there makes use of a pot for the mixing / rising stage. Personally I prefer a chewier bread so I like to have a stage where I get to knead some love into the dough. But what I definitely took from this recipe is sprinkling the yeast into the warm milk (well, actually I mix it in. Really want to get that little bacteria dissolved and incorporated in there!!), but I'm sorry... cinnamon NEEDS brown sugar!!

But I did basically take the recipe (ingredients) from The Merry Gourmet. So before I go off on another tangent, let's get that recipe rolling! 

Fit Friday 2.0

Last week I told you about my intention to get (and keep!) physically fit this year, this week I want to talk about the other thing I want to get in shape... my finances!

I graduated college in 2010 (after also attending a year and a bit of university) and along with my Baking and Pastry certificate, I took approximately $30,000 home with me. I come from a small town in Northwestern Ontario, so post-secondary education always means leaving home. If you've done this... you can sympathize with me!! If not... just go look at that number again and be happy your parents (or other relatives) put you up or help you out!!

Since then (because that was almost three years ago!) I worked at home for a year, lived in England for another year (refer to smooshetravels!) and now we're half way through that third year and I'm doing the working at home thing again.

In that time I've managed to reduce my debt to about $18,600 (not too bad for someone with no real career in that time!) But now is crunch time.

As a result of my financial situation, my relationship status took a massive hit and (for reasons other than my finances) I am 23 and living with my parents... But those are two completely different stories and I don't really feel up to delving into them just yet... but I digress.

So here's the plan! I want to get a handle on those finances and (I know this sounds a bit optimistic but...) I want to get rid of that damn debt!! Now I know it's very unlikely that I can get rid of it in one year, so that's why I'm going to set a more realistic goal!! By 2014 I want to have $5,000 stashed in my savings and my bank loan (which is sitting pretty at $5,806), completely gone and I want to be started in (hopefully WELL in) on that darn OSAP loan.

Don't get OSAP. Ever. OSAP is the spawn of all things evil.

Did I mention how OSAP sucks the life out of you? Want proof? Take a look at my miserable life. I blog because I hope that somone out there will read it and take pity on me and follow and comment so I don't feel so alone in this big stupid world.

I hate life.



.... And I digress.

So there are my finances. I hate money, but I need money so the creditors stay off my back. You will be reading about this often, I'm sure... And hopefully someone out there can rejoice with me when the debt is gone!!

But until then.... here's a cute picture of a puppy underwater!

Who thinks of this stuff?!!?!?

Cheers!! xoxo,
-Shelly

Wish Wednesday!

Welcome to the second edition of #wishwednesday!!

Last week I showed a few 'decor' items mainly because I really want a place to call my own. So even though I am where I am in my life right now, I'm still building and furnishing my dream home... in my mind at least!!

I want be able to do this!! FUROSHIKI!!!

Fascinators!!! The truth comes out... I love the royals!!

"Foals Rush In"??? SO cute!!!!

 

And finally... this little cutie!! Don't these quokka pictures just make you smile and want to cuddle??

Cheers!! xoxo!
-Shelly

Links: Furoshiki - umai, Fascinators - Chick Advisor, Foals Rush In - ModCloth, Quokka - White Wolf

Weekend Baking

I love baking.

Plain and simple. I absolutely LOVE baking. I'm in the zone, my element, heaven, when my hands are caked with butter, sugar and flour.

So it seemed like a pretty simple challenge to set for myself for this year:

Bake something new every weekend.

Sounds easy enough, but between work and living with no proper grocery store in the small town that I do, it's actually more difficult than you'd think.

This weekend --the first weekend of 2013-- I got a bit of a slow start on this challenge. I only managed to complete one new bit of baking. (I word it that way because I still managed to slip in one other recipe... left-over-eggnog pudding! But I don't count it as new because pudding is hardly new!!)

Galette des rois and holy are they yummy!! Mine aren't nearly as pretty as the site I found the recipe on!

I plan to share the recipes and many photos of my baking, but for this first post, I won't be doing that. The main reason is because I took the recipe directly off another blog with only very minor alterations (la receta de la felicidad) But the other reason is because I was too excited about making then eating them that I didn't get many pictures!

So please do me a favour and go over to LRF and make these delicious little flaky bundles of almond joy for yourself at home and thank @SandeeA for the amazing recipe!!

My little baking buddy, Cocoa (apt name...) She helps so I never need to sweep after baking!

Cheers!!! xoxo
-Shelly