Purple Luxe

Here's a look at one of Essie's new Luxe Effect polishes, shine of the times. I LOVE this polish, it contains slightly larger flakes then traditional glitter. It has this amazing iridescent quality which can pick up so many different colors. It actually reminds me a lot of the mineral Mica. (What up 4th grade geology!?)

It looks great paired with pinks & reds or blues & in this case purple! 

What you need:

Essie Luxe Effects shine of the times w  Funky Fingers Cheshire

Start with 2 coats of Funky Fingers Cheshire.

 Then add on a coat of Essie Luxe Effects shine of the times & your favorite quick dry top coat.

Here is a few more looks in different lighting so you can see the full spectrum of colors this polish gets! 

 I wanted to show you how this pairs with a pink polish; so here is a quick look of shine of the times paired with Essie eternal optimist as a base.

On Pinterest? Repin here or here! 

Cute Cukes!

Here is a quick & easy way to class up your cucumbers!

 All you need is a fresh cucumber, a peeler, a fork & a knife. 

Start by washing & peeling your cucumber.

Once your cucumber is all peeled take a fork & press into the cucumber. 

Drag along the side to create ridges. Repeat this all the way around.

Using your knife, slice up your cucumbers & voilà you have some super cute 'cukes'!

Add these too your salad, cucumber sandwiches or try them in a tangy marinade!

This marinade is made from 3 parts white vinegar, 1 part vegetable oil, 2 Tbs of Sugar. Let them soak for 10-15 minutes for a tangy treat.

On pinterest? Repin here or here!

Orange Cream Cupcakes

It's cupcake time! So after seeing this pin on pinterest, I was curious to try it! Basically it says you can replace the eggs, oil & water in a boxcake mix with a can of diet soda then top with light cool whip topping for a cupcake under 100 calories! Sounds good to me! Now while this does add aspartame (fake sugar) to your cupcake, it is a nice alternative if you are on a diet & desperate for some sweets! So like cupcakes consume aspartame sparingly & in moderation.  

So when the challenge came for me to make a low cal birthday cupcake for a family friend, I decided to get  creative. 

What you need:

Diet 7Up wDuncan Hines Orange Supreme Cake Mix w Nestle White Chocolate Chips,w 1 Cara Cara Orange w Light Whipped Topping w Cupcake Baking Cups w 1 Gallon Zip-Lock Bag w A Food Processor w Apple Corer w Fresh Raspberries & Decorative Sprinkles (optional)

Mix & Bake

 

You can actually just use a can of Diet 7Up but since I don't drink soda regularly I didn't feel like buying a 12 pack & just got a bottle. Measure out 12 ounces of the soda & add it to your cake mix. It will fizz for a moment so give it a second or two before you blend. Place your batter into your baking cups & bake for 18-22 minutes at 350.

White Chocolate & Fruit Purée

While your cupcakes bake you'll want to get out your food processor to purée your white chocolate chips & Cara Cara orange. (If you can't find a Cara Cara orange you can use the local variety at your market.) The Cara Cara orange has an exceptionally sweet & tangy flavor which will blend nicely with the smooth white chocolate flavor. 

In a microwave safe bowl add 1 cup of the chopped white chocolate chips & begin to microwave in 10 second intervals. Stir in-between & repeat 3 times until smooth.  Then you are going to want to spoon in the orange purée. Add in one spoonful at a time & stir. At first the chocolate will seize & begin to get thick and chalk like. IT'S OK. Just stir the best you can, when you feel like it is well blended add in another spoonful. The chocolate will smooth itself out again. I added about 5-6 spoonfuls until I got a nice orange cream flavor. 

Fill

By now your cupcakes should be done. Take them out of the oven & let them cool. Then take an apple corer & gently press into your cupcakes. (I only went about half way down into the cupcake, I didn't want to fill the cupcakes with too much filling seeing as these are diet inspired cupcakes.) Then fill your cupcakes up with the orange cream filling.

Top

Then take a large 1 gallon zip-lock bag & fill it with the cool whip topping, snip off a corner with scissors to create a makeshift piping bag. Top off the holes you created in the cupcakes above the orange cream filling.

Swirl the piping bag around to create your mock icing topping. 

You can stop there if you like, but to make these a bit more aesthetically pleasing I added a little bit of red sugar sprinkles & some fresh raspberries. :)

So even with the addition of the orange cream filling & toppings you can still have a cupcake for around 150 calories!

On Pinterest? Repin here!