Diary of a Teenage Baker

Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

Posted on May 13, 2013

The first time my family tried to make chocolate covered strawberries, we used the wrong kind of chocolate and tried to add water to the chocolate to make it thinner. Bad idea. We eventually got them dipped in a new batch of chocolate, but the strawberries slipped right out of their chocolate shells because of condensation and again, wrong kind of chocolate. Since then, I hadn’t thought to make chocolate covered strawberries for anything (partly because I really like plain strawberries)… until I saw these.

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March & April in Pictures

Posted on May 2, 2013

I think it’s starting to hit me that in just a little over a month, my class will be graduating and moving on with our lives, and I probably won’t see 80% of the people I’ve spent the past four years with ever again. Everything is a ‘last’… and even though that can be a good thing (last calculus test, last AP exam), they can also be sad – last spring break at home, last orchestra trip, last JLC breakfast run.

Despite the abundance of ‘lasts’, the past two months have also brought a lot of firsts! I stayed in New York City for the first time over spring break. My friends took me to watch my first Broadway show (Cinderella – I highly recommend it!), and we went up the Empire State Building, attended a Hillsong church service, did some shopping, and ate a lot!

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Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Barefoot Princess Riverboat Cruise, beach sunrise, Broadway at the Beach, Cinderella, college, dinner cruise, Empire State Building, Fiestaval, Hard Rock Cafe, Laduree, Myrtle Beach, New York City, North Carolina, orchestra, potluck, senior year, spring break, Tarheels, UNC | Leave a comment

Avocado Egg Salad Sandwich

Posted on April 30, 2013

My trip to Myrtle Beach last weekend made me realize that cooking with limited equipment requires a lot of improvising and some finger-crossing. I love cooking, but I definitely also appreciate simple meals that are easy to prepare with minimal gadgets (mashing avocados falls under that category) – especially when less time cooking means more time on the beach!

While I didn’t think to make it during our stay, this is a sandwich I’ve been whipping up for lunch whenever we have a stock of ripe avocados and eggs – it’s healthy and delicious and doesn’t take a lot of time. Basically, a win-win-win situation.

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Posted in Appetizers, Entrees | Tagged avacado, corn, egg salad, guacamole, healthy sandwich | Leave a comment

Perfectly Chewy M&M Cookies

Posted on April 15, 2013

In celebration of my official decision to attend the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill next fall, I present to you the M&M cookies that I wrote about in my supplemental college essay! These are perfectly crisp on the outside, chewy on the inside, and dotted with colorful melted M&M’s that will surely stain your fingers with every bite .

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Posted in Cookies | Tagged candy coating, chewy cookie, chocolate chip cookie, college, college essay, colorful cookies, m&m cookies, mini m&ms, senior year, UNC Chapel hill | 2 Comments

Stuffed Baby Red Potatoes

Posted on April 11, 2013

If I had a dollar for every time I’ve resolved to eat ‘clean’ and healthy, but fell off the wagon after only a few weeks, I’d have… at least $3 or $4. I mean, face it. If I’m making cookies for someone there’s no way I can just give them away without making sure they don’t taste horrendous! I’m actually sacrificing my health to enforce quality assurance with everything that leaves my kitchen…

Just kidding. I’m just on another one of those health kicks and in denial that I should have to deprive myself of a fabulous M&M cookie (coming soon!). A few nights ago when I couldn’t figure out what to eat for dinner that wasn’t salad (again), I whipped these up. I got the idea from one of the appetizers at the bridal shower I made the ombre rose cake for, but those used sour cream and real bacon. My variation puts a healthy spin on it by using plain Greek yogurt and turkey bacon instead. Plain Greek yogurt tastes exactly like sour cream and is way healthier. Turkey bacon… well, it smells and tastes the same. The texture is slightly chewier, but when it’s crumbled up you can’t even tell