Let Your Heart Be Light

Music Monday


Tasty Tuesday

{ Cheating on Nutella with this cheaper spread | Dinner of chicken inasal and a mound of chorizo rice before watching a movie about vampires and wolves, hehe }

Wishful Wednesday

Source: hitrecord.org via Macy on Pinterest

Thoughtful Thursday

Source: lisacongdon.com via Macy on Pinterest

{ In love with Lisa Congdon's 365 Days of Hand Lettering }

Fashion Friday

Comfortably Formal by conversationbreak featuring metallic handbags

Two weddings in March next year (one day after the other!). Time to think of what to wear.

* weekly-themed post adapted from That's Chic

You Know Where To Find Me

Music Monday

{ Thank you, Mika, for tweeting a link to this video! }

Tasty Tuesday

 { My favorite chocolate bar of all time in dive bar form! Alpine White, Sebastian's }

Wishful Wednesday

{ Friendship that spans time and distance. I ♥ my Lolas! }

Thoughtful Thursday

{ Hello, how are you? }

Fashion Friday

{ Anyone who can rock high tops like Taylor Tomasi Hill is chic in my book.(Feeling!) For purposes of style stalking. }

* weekly-themed post adapted from That's Chic

Baker's Bites: Happy 87th Birthday, Lola!

My dad's mom turned 87 last Saturday. Baked her some chocolate and peanut butter chip cookies to share with everyone for lunch. I love making chocolate chip cookies! They're always a big hit as proven by the crumbs left from the dozen I left for the house. My dad says the box we gave lola was also wiped out. Hooray!

I usually cut up the butter into blocks before creaming so that the mixer doesn't have a hard time whipping it. I also cream the butter a few minutes before adding the sugars. Usually, recipes tell you to mix the white and brown sugar first or cream all three ingredients together. I don't know. This technique just seems to work better for me.

I like that the cookies stay almost the same shape as I scooped them whenever I use a silicone mat. They kind of just flatten a little which results in...

...perfect cookies—all the time!

They were just the right kind of chewy and the chocolate chips and peanut butter chips were ooey gooey. Can't wait to make another batch. What are your favorite cookie recipes? Care to share?

Don't forget to like Macy's Fields on Facebook!

Baker's Bites: The Inception Cookie

I've been wanting to try this ever since it popped up on my browser on one of my many blog-hopping sessions. A cookie within a cookie. How genius is that? I was kind of disappointed (maybe I was expecting too much?), but topped with a scoop of Vanilla Almond ice cream, it was perfect!

Cool Tip: Cookie dough chilled overnight results in better cookies. Don't have 24 hours? Keep your flour in the fridge. It works the same way. (:

Baker's Bites: Cookie Fail

I've been obsessing about these melt-in-your-mouth brownie cookies for a while. I had some egg whites left over from making the Chocolate Turtle Pie for New Year's so I tried the recipe over the weekend. They came out chewy and too sweet (I didn't have any dark chocolate around so I used semisweet). Next time, I think I will use more egg whites and lessen the chocolate (maybe just 1 cup).

The only missing ingredient in this picture are the egg whites. Yes, these cookies have no flour at all!

They looked puffy when I took them out of the oven, but quickly deflated. I tried leaving them in the oven longer, but the chocolate cooked too much and turned chewy. I promise to try this again with better results!

Sweet Disposition

Music Monday

My best friend and her fiancé are sharing love stories leading up to their wedding. ♥ Click on the image to view the first of four videos.


Tasty Tuesday

A kilogram of Belgian Milk Chocolate from my mom's sister. Good stuff.

Wishful Wednesday
Good weather this week! I'm going on a trip—my first one overseas in a LONG time AND my first trip to a new place. (: I'm so excited!

Thoughtful Thursday

{ via OnceWed.com }


Fashion Friday

Fit my dress for my best friend's wedding in February. Our dress color reminds me of Belle in Beauty and the Beast.

{ via Disney Wiki }

Baker's Bites: Chocolate Turtle Pie

Ran out of pecans so I put lots of whipped cream on top. I have 5 egg whites in the fridge. Maybe it's time to attempt those melt-in-your-mouth brownie cookies? (:

Baker's Bites: Chocolate Chunk and Pecan Cookies

Had a small block of chocolate left from my cake pop experiment a few months ago (the end product is in the December issue of Candy!), so I decided to chop them into chunks and mix chopped pecans with it into my cookie batter. Delicious chocolate chunks in every bite! Merry Christmas, everyone! (:

Chocoholics Anonymous

Actually, I admit it and embrace my chocoholic-ness wholeheartedly. I'm no chocolate snob. It doesn't matter if it costs P15 or as much as P1,500. If it's good chocolate, I'll eat it and love it just the same.

My love affair with chocolate started at a very young age. I remember Christmas in Marikina when I was a kid. My kuya and I would have our stockings filled with all kinds of chocolate and candy. I remember those blocks of chocolate wrapped in gold paper—some had pinipig, some had nuts. There were also chocolate coins, which tasted so good.

I graduated to Mr. Goodbar, Krackel, Barnone (the best chocolate bar EVER, bar none—DUH), Alpine White, KitKat, and Ferrero Rocher.

Of course, I also had local favorites like Serg's (RIP, sniff), Goya, and Choki Choki (which I used to have in my mouth 24/7, not kidding).

My most recent finds: Goya Chunky (I like the white one with cashews best), KitKat Orange, and M&M Pretzels (if any of you are coming from abroad, please bring me home a giant bag of this. I will pay you, of course!).


When I was at Yummy Eats a couple of months ago, I came across Risa Fine Bespoke Chocolates. We tried their truffles and my favorites were the ones with orange and Cerveza Negra. Since my friend Koko is friends with the owners, I was able to order through her a Cuadro in Tiramissyou. A block costs P280.

What's in it? It's white chocolate with a creamy center and is covered in cocoa powder just like tiramisu. I would have liked a stronger coffee flavor (I'm not sure there even is?), but I liked it enough to order twice. I can only have one piece at a time and I think it's perfect with a cup of coffee.


I'm not yet sure what I want to try next, but I'm thinking of trying the other flavors of Cuadro. The one with almonds looks really good!

What about you? What are your chocolate obsessions right now?

Artisan Chocolate

Last Tuesday, we headed to seven different stores for a shoot. These pretty things caught my eye when we entered Team Manila.


I got the Milk Chocolate with Pili and Pinipig and the Milk Chocolate with Organic Batangas Barako Coffee. Good stuff. They're a bit pricey at P95 a bar but I'd gladly buy another one!

My friend swears the dark chocolate with siling labuyo is the best but I don't like spicy things in my chocolate!

Theo & Philo Artisan Chocolates
www.theoandphilo.com

I love Instagram!

These days, my point and shoot hasn't really seen the light of day. Stashed inside my bag's secret compartment, I actually go a week without taking it out of its pouch. I've been taking lots of pictures with utagai, though. Thanks to Hipstamatic, Incredibooth, Blendcam, and Instagram.



2011 has been off to a great start. I'm putting my new notebook and markers to use and I'm determined not to miss a day. I've discovered a new favorite treat. I've been eating good food (not necessarily healthy, but good!). Finding new ways to wear old things in my closet. Meeting up with friends I haven't seen in years!

Time to get down to serious business. I'm excited. (: