Reinventing Thin Mints!

I'm sure many of us are guilty of buying a few boxes of Girl Scout cookies and storing them in the cabinet. After breaking into the box and devouring one sleeve, we find the rest of the box goes back in the cabinet and forgotten (well, at least until that late night snack). But I found a great new recipe to put those delicious girl scout cookies to use!

Thin Mint Cupcakes

You can either use a chocolate cake mix like Duncan Hines, Betty Crocker, or make a mix from scratch! Here's one of my favorite never fail chocolate cake recipes.

Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake Recipe:

2 cups sugar

1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup HERSHEY's Cocoa

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup boiling water 

 Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Place cupcake liners in your cupcake sheet

2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared liners.

3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. 

4. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely before frosting. 

Now for the Thin Mint Frosting!

I found this delicious recipe from a link on Pinterest and loved the way it came out.

Recipe:

1 sleeve of Thin Mint Cookies

1 cup of butter at room temp (2 sticks)

4-5 cups of confectionary sugar

2-3 tablespoons of whole milk

1/2 teaspoon of mint extract

Green Food Coloring

Directions:

First, place the sleeve of cookies into a food processor and pulse until the cookies are broken into small crumbs. Next, cream the butter until smooth and slowly add confectionary sugar. Continue to add the sugar and add another teaspoon of milk once it starts to get too stiff. Make sure to stop the mixer in between and wipe down the sides of the bowl. Keep adding together ingredients simultaneously until smooth. Next step, add the mint extract. Now tint the frosting with just a hint of green food coloring! After that, slowly add in the cookie crumbs just until mixed.

Make sure you are satisfied with the consistency of your frosting. Don't be afraid to test it and see if its too stiff or too runny. If too stiff, add more milk. If too thin, add some more confectionary sugar. When making homemade frosting, its okay to go off the given recipe. Just continually test until its to your liking! 

Now, all you need to do is frost the cupcakes! I have a great icing bag with a variety of tips for this process. Make sure if you decide to use a smaller tip for this recipe, that you pulse your thin mint cookies into very small crumbs. If the chunks are too big, you will run into the problem of getting them stuck in the tip. 

For an extra garnish, stick half a thin mint on top of the frosting. And that's it! Your left with a delicious minty cupcake. A perfect dessert for any meal (or replacement of that late night snack). Enjoy! xo

Festival Jumpin'

As we all start to shop for our new spring and summer wardrobe, there are so many new trends to pick from. Instead of buying the same ol' color pallet and the same ol' pair of shorts, try something different! One trend I've recently become obsessed with is patterned jumpsuits. 

What's better than a cute onesie? These patterned jumpsuits are absolutely perfect for a summer daytime look. Whether your headed to brunch, out shopping with the girls, or looking for that perfect concert outfit, a jumpsuit is a great option every girl should have in their closet. I personally love the idea of this look for a summer festival. Both comfortable and fashionable with a vintage 70's style.

Don't worry, this trend won't break your wallet either! Although I've found some amazingly pricey jumpsuits, I've also had some of the best luck finding them at T.J Maxx and Marshalls for a great price. Finding that your jumpsuit is too long? Pair it with a great pair of wedges! Add a bracelet, your favorite pair of sunglasses, an over the shoulder bag, and your ready to enjoy the sunshine in this free spirited and effortless look! xo

Trend: Bright Pink Lipstick

Looking for a new trend to glam up your looks? 

Bright Lipstick is the way to go! 

Emma Stone

Although we may not be fully ready to jump from our dark winter palette into a bright spring line, a pop of bright lipstick takes a look a long way. We've seen the trend on a number of celebrities from Emma Stone above, to Blake Lively, to Rihanna, to multiple selfies of Khloe Kardashian. 

I personally got hooked on this trend last spring and love it! One of my favorite bright pink lipsticks is Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick: Streak. You can purchase this shade online at UrbanDecay.com or Sephora. At first glance it may seem way too bright but don't be afraid to give it a try! 

     

One thing I love about this trend is that it pretty much goes with anything. Personally, I like to wear it with neutrals like white, tan, black, grey or blue as shown in the photo above. But if you want to be more daring, try pairing it with a brighter color like yellow! Another thing I love about this trend is it's great day-to-night. Pair the lipstick with neutral makeup, some liquid eyeliner, a little bronzer, a pair of jeans and a cute top for day. At night throw your hair in an up-do, put on a cute little black dress and your ready for date night! 

You may not think you can rock a bright shade but you'd be surprised! Don't be afraid to spring out of your comfort zone and go bright! xo

Spring Salad!

Another weekend flies by and Monday, we meet again. But as the weather gets nicer and the sun starts to peak through the clouds, its finally starting to feel like Spring after all. We all know what that means ladies, time to get that beach bod ready for summer! In hopes of getting a kick start, here's a new simple & delicious salad recipe I came up with to try out!

Baby Arugula salad with Caramelized Walnuts, Feta, Apples and Apple Honey Vinaigrette 

Ingredients:

1 bag of baby arugula 

1 can of walnuts

1/2 cup of feta cheese

1 sliced apple

Apple Honey Vinaigrette

Directions:

First place the baby arugula in a bowl. Next, I like to buy a can of walnuts and caramelize them myself. Throw a handful of the caramelized nuts in the bowl along with 1/2 cup of feta cheese. Next step, take a nice fresh apple and cut it into slices. Any type of apple you like will do here. Lay the apple slices on top of the bed of salad in a pretty pinwheel shape. Now, for the dressing! Heres a great recipe for a Apple Honey Vinaigrette that goes along great. Drizzle a little dressing on top of your salad and voila! A quick and easy salad great for lunch or as a side with any meal. Enjoy! xo