lemon bliss.

the lemon's right now are so delicious. oozing with flavor. i'm delighted when I am able to incorporate fresh fruit in my baking.
yesterday it was a lemon cream cake and today I made vegan strawberry lemon cupcakes. topped with a lemon buttercream icing and a slice of a fresh strawberry! delectable! [i used almond milk, tapioca, and earth balance butter in place of the dairy/eggs!]

easter!

so after an amazing weekend of riding mopeds and my hands covered in black grease, we had an easter celebration with my family! these pictures explain everything, from lounging outside, kickball at the park and plenty of food! we ate and drank all day long!

Enjoy and hope everyone's Easter was just as delightful!

My mother decorated the table and everything house, and she housed us all. Her house is beautiful!
My sweet sister Shannon made the scallop potatoes and she is modeling my Easter cupcakes
I made the Easter cupcakes.

all the rest of the food just showed up! haha.

dead peds, nashville tn.

This weekend was EPIC. Nashville, aka Dead Peds had their first annual Moped Rally! It was amazing. Action packed with 60 mile rides out to the country, moonshine, a full throttled square dance, lot's of law's broken for sure. The weekend was overall amazing!

There was a reporter from the Tennessean there who was taking pictures of us and had interviewed a few people, so when it run's in the paper Ill be sure to take some photos!



[square dance at the Zombieshop]
[this awesome picture was taken by Mickey Bernal]









[i did not take these pictures below!]
























[also, because i've neglected blogging all weekend, i will be posting another blog shortly about easter, many pictures included!]

strawberries + no bakes

[strawberry cake, made yesterday! fresh strawberries, perfect for the weather here!]

this week the sun has begun to shine a constant radiance through my windows. it's only encouraged me to bake more and more.

recently i've been on a major no-bake cookie kick! the oats + chocolate + peanut butter combination hit the spot when i'm craving something sweet!

I've been replacing my original recipe with gluten free oats rather then regular ones, and honey rather then sugar.
I also replaced the peanut butter with almond butter, and I'm making sure i'm using 73% or higher chocolate for a dairy free treat, and almond milk to give it an extra nutty taste.


[no bake dough]



[no bake's stirring]



[using 73% dark cocoa, dairy free!]



on another note, i absolutely love these people! they were a vital part of me becoming a woman. this wonderful woman Christie and her husband Stephen sang at our wedding and they have been such a blessing to know. These three munchkins Jaydinn, Rayna and Finn, make Robert and I actually want to have kids. I love these people and every time Robert and I go to Kansas we make sure to spend a good chunk of time with them. I cannot wait to see them again soon!






on another side note, Robert and I have been making these fun recycled wood words. He's been cutting them out and I've been either staining or painting them. We've been using them as baby shower/wedding gifts. really fun and 100% recycled. Really fun. ok wait, the paint isn't, so 90% recycled!




That's all, more bites later! I have chocolate oatmeal ball's in the oven right now!

blueberries.

yesterday I attempted to make my first ever "Blueberry Crisp!" It turned out great!
I experimented it on a group of people who I know pretty well and they all gave me the thumbs up!
The host of the dinner we presented the dessert at even homemade maple vanilla whipped cream! What a treat!










[people obviously loved it if there is non left right?]

This recipe had no refined sugar, no gluten and no dairy! my mouth and stomach were happy!
It's not fully perfected, but I'll share with you what I created!

filling:
3 pints of fresh, rinsed blueberries
2-3 tbl. of agave
juice from 1 lemon [optional]
3 tbl. of almond meal
4 tbl. unsweetened applesauce

the crisp:
3/4 c. of almond meal
1 c. unsweetened applesauce
1 c. of gluten free rolled oats
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
8 tbl. earth balance butter [or regular butter if you like!] cut into small pieces

oven: 400
grease a 9 X 13 baking pan.
combine all the filling ingredients and stir well.
in a mixer add the "crisp" ingredients and mix on low for about 30 seconds or until the butter is broken up.
mix until the crisp becomes crumbly. with some chuncks!
pour the filling into the pan and make sure it's even, then crumble the crisp on top

bake for about 30-40 minutes, or until done [it will be gooey and runny]
let cool. enjoy with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream!


On another note, this weekend is the Dead Ped's Moped Rally in Nashville. Robert and I are so excited! 3 full days of riding our sweet little mopeds all over Nashville with some amazing people!




[robert and I riding in Denver!]



[robert trying to comfort a sweet crying baby. love this picture!]

showers + louisville, ky.

Sunday morning I woke up and Robert helped me make some sweet little shortbreads for my lovely friend Christina's Bridal Shower. She is getting married in less then 2 months! It is so crazy! We are so happy for Christina and Byron!

Robert was so helpful with the cookies!







[all of Christina's Loot!]



[2 of the bridesmaids....]



[the beautiful bride and a maid of hers]


All of this happened yesterday, along with Robert's brilliant idea to spontaneously drive to Louisville, KY to buy a vintage brown propane stove for our bus! It's so petit and cute! It's a nice sunburst brown on the outside with a vintage blue inside. 3 burners, that's all i need on the bus! we made a fun trip out of it, and got to see good friends, and spend a lot of time in this amazing hotel! There was a art museum in it! what!?

21C




[an interesting take on politics displayed through a crazy video]



[eyes in the bathroom!]



[loved this Dylan picture]






all of the art was amazing. i loved these people captured.




[robert really enjoying the art, ha!]



[out door art]



[tiny people! all made of electronic insides!]



[21c has their own pomegranate limo! what?]

All together this was a fabulous weekend! Now to prepare for easter!