• Recipe | Classic Almond Biscotti

    December 28, 2016

    Hello Everyone!

    I can’t believe it, but this is my 100th post! I know it’s been over 100 days since I first started my blog, and I said I would do my best to write a post each day, but with the wedding preparations and prepping for our trip to Mauritius, I haven’t been posting as much as I would like. I will definitely try to write at least 3-5 posts each week (it seems that my readers like my food posts, so I will try to do more of those…Here’s one for you now!)

    A few years back, I wanted to try making my own almond biscotti and I found a recipe on Pinterest. It was really good, even C asked for the recipe so she could make it herself. I just made the biscotti for Christmas eve dessert with the family. It’s already delicious, but you could add some chocolate or dip it in your tea (or rum like my uncle, HW, did). It definitely tastes better than the store-bought kind and it’s the perfect snack to enjoy with a hot cup of tea. Below is the recipe, courtesy of Julia from Fat Girl Trapped in a Skinny Body. I’ve copied the recipe directly from the website:

    Classic Almond Biscotti

    Yield: makes about 48 biscotti (depending on the size)

    Ingredients

    • 3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
    • 1 tbsp baking powder
    • 1/4 tsp salt
    • 1 1/2 cups sugar
    • 10 tbsp (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
    • 3 eggs
    • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
    • 1 tbsp almond extract
    • 1 cup almond slices, toasted

    Instructions

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat mat.

    Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl.

    In a large bowl mix the sugar, melted butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until it’s well combined. Mix in almonds.

    Divide the dough in half. Get some flour on your hands and shape each dough portion into a 13 inch-long x 3 inch-wide, x 1 1/2 inch thick log. Transfer both logs to the prepared baking sheet, spacing about 2 inches apart. *They don’t expand much, so it’s ok if the logs are very close to the edge of the baking sheet.

    Bake the logs until they’re golden brown, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool the logs completely on the sheet on a wire rack, about 30 minutes. Keep your oven on.

    Transfer the cooled logs to a cutting board. Use a serrated knife and cut logs into 1/2-inch-wide slices. Arrange the slices cut side down on the same baking sheet. Bake for 12 minutes. Turn the biscotti over and continue baking about 10-12 more minutes, just until they’re starting to get some color. Transfer the biscotti to a wire rack and cool. They’ll harden even more as they cool.

    Store on the counter for up to 1 week. Or store them in the freezer in a plastic baggy for months.

    Enjoy!

    Love,

    jen

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  • Carry-On Travel Essentials

    December 27, 2016

    Hi Everyone!

    I thought I would share a list of travel essentials to pack in your carry-on for long flights. Since I haven’t travelled a whole lot, I searched what other people suggested to pack in their carry-ons and most of the items were things I usually carry in my purse every day. For my carry-on, I bought a mini backpack from Forever21. I would suggest getting a backpack that has a zipper closure so that when it’s underneath the seat, the flap doesn’t accidentally open and nothing falls out. If you prefer RFID blocking bags and anti-theft bags, Travelon sells bags that don’t look old ladyish (like some anti-theft bags out there). Both M and C have a Travelon crossbody bag and I just recently purchased a small one as well.

    • earphones (even though they may provide earphones, those obviously aren’t the best quality and they tend to fall out of my ears)
    • iPod/tablet (for reading ebooks) or a book
    • lip balm
    • travel-size hand cream/moisturizer
    • tissues
    • chewing gum
    • toothbrush with a travel-size toothpaste or mouthwash (these Slim Sonic Electric Toothbrushes by Violife are super cute and you can buy replacement heads for them!)
    • facial wipes (and maybe feminine wipes depending on how long you’re travelling)
    • black/blue pen (for filling out those landing cards!)
    • Tylenol or Advil
    • Gravol
    • nail file (emery boards can be bought in packs and won’t get confiscated like metal nail files)
    • phone charger and a travel adapter
    • travel pillow
    • cozy blanket scarf!! I bought mine from Old Navy and I would’ve preferred it to be thicker for the plane. Luckily, on British Airways, they supplied blankets for all four flights we took to get to Mauritius (we chose layovers in London instead of Paris). If you don’t want to use the free ones that the airlines provide or pay to use one, a blanket scarf will keep you super cozy.

    I made the mistake of buying a white and black one and then I wore all black on the plane. My pants, sweater and my hair was covered in white fluff by the end of the flight!

    And obviously, don’t forget your passport and boarding pass!!

    Love,

    jen

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  • My Sister’s Wedding Dress and My Maid of Honour Dresses

    December 10, 2016

    Hi Everyone!

    For those who have been waiting to find out what my maid of honour dress and my sister’s wedding dress looked like, here they are! I’ve provided a link to my sister’s wedding dress so you can see what it looks like: Allure Bridals in Style 9068 (Ivory). My maid of honour dress was After Six by Dessy Collection in Style 6704 (Sapphire). I took off the bow at the neckline because I didn’t like it.

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    Since I was the only bridesmaid, C let me choose whatever dress I wanted and I would definitely wear this again. I absolutely love the colour of the dress and the flowiness of the chiffon. I was always planning to have an updo for my hair because it’s so hot in Mauritius and didn’t want my hair to stick to the back of my neck. Also, in my opinion, having your hair in an updo is an absolute must with a mock halter neckline. The one thing I wasn’t crazy about is that there’s a seam at the bust where the inner satin material comes together and there’s a bit of pointiness in the boob area. There was nothing the seamstress could do to make it lie flatter across my chest. When I originally tried this dress on, it was about 5 sizes too big, so the pointiness wasn’t noticeable because there was a lot more material and also it was clipped in a way that pulled it tighter.

    My makeup looked flawless and I got a tiny breakout on my chin which the makeup artist was able to mask.

    I’m not really sure what happened with my updo, it wasn’t exactly what I asked for, but as long as the front view of my hair looked good, it didn’t matter as long as it stayed up the entire night. I hate hairspray, my hair felt like a helmet because there was so much of it. Also, I prefer when the top of my ears are covered with hair, it looks more relaxed/romantic.

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    For the reception in Toronto, I wore the blue dress for the first half of the reception. The right picture above is from the Toronto reception, I liked my hairstyle much better this time. I don’t know why I’m holding the microphone so awkwardly, my wrist is at a weird angle. I changed into my second dress for the shoe game and dancing. Unfortunately, that meant no professional shots in the purple dress because we took pictures before dinner. It also means that most of the pictures are a bit fuzzy in my second dress, so I don’t have any good ones of me wearing it. The second dress was by Alfred Angelo (which went out of business- the store I got both dresses from is also out of business). I got the style 7359S in Viola. Pictured below is the dress in a wine shade.

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    For accessories, I wore a pair of simple crystal earrings, a sparkly bracelet, a criss cross ring that my sister got for me on Etsy as my bridesmaid gift and Michael Kors T-Strap Berkley Sandals in Silver.

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    Love,

    jen

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  • Let’s go to Mauritius!

    December 8, 2016

    Hi Everyone!

    Sorry I haven’t been posting very much in the last month, but we were preparing for our trip to Mauritius where my sister tied the knot at the Hotel Sofitel Mauritius L’Impérial Resort & Spa! My parents and I didn’t stay for very long in Mauritius, but the beaches were absolutely beautiful! As Canadians, we definitely weren’t used to the heat especially since it is summer in Mauritius- even their winter time is warmer than Canadian summers, so you can imagine how hot it was for us. Thus, the reason for our short stay of one week (technically, it was 5 days when you take into account the two full days of travelling there and back).

    The Sofitel was paradise, as soon as we walked in, we were blown away (see photos below). They definitely made the right choice in picking the Sofitel for their beach wedding. Especially since they basically chose the venue based on pictures. You know how you look at pictures and then you go somewhere and it’s not what you imagined (in a bad way)? Well, the Sofitel’s pictures did not do it justice; it was even more beautiful in person than the pictures.

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    For the first half of our trip, we stayed at Le Méridien Ile Maurice (pictures below), which was beautiful as well, but obviously not as breathtaking as the Sofitel (since Le Méridien is a 4-star hotel and Sofitel a 5-star). Regardless, the view of the water was equally breathtaking at both resorts. Each day, we got a buffet breakfast, the danishes and croissants were to die for, as well as the salted butter from Australia. For the three days we had breakfast at Le Méridien, I had the potatoes (which they served differently each day- potato wedges, fried potatoes with onions, sliced potatoes with chives). My parents said that the banana croissants were also tasty. At breakfast, they served oatmeal, omelettes, pancake crepes, congee, fruit, etc. One day, they even served noodles with meatballs (I’m not used to eating breakfast so that was way too heavy for me at 8 in the morning).  We decided not to get dinner each night since we didn’t know if we’d be eating out or not. I would highly suggest getting breakfast and dinner included because the buffet was very expensive at dinner time. Since you probably want to be back at your resort before dark, you’ll be back in time for dinner anyway.

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    It gets very dark in Mauritius- it started getting dark around 7pm and our resort was pitch black by 8pm. Their streets are very different from Canada and they don’t have street lamps, so the only source of light is coming from the car. I’d say it’s best to be back by your resort earlier than later if you have rented your own car.

    I didn’t get to tan very much because we arrived a few days before the wedding and I didn’t want to get a sunburn. The day after the wedding, we went on the beach, but it started to get a bit cloudy by the afternoon. I may have gotten a slight tan, but it’s not super noticeable, the most tanned parts of my body are my feet. Don’t forget to slather than sunblock on! I used SPF 110 and SPF 60 (face). Also, make sure to bring insect spray especially if you’re going to the botanical gardens or seven coloured sands! In the travel guide, it says that insect spray is expensive there, so make sure you pack some in your suitcase! We didn’t buy a lot of souvenirs, but I brought back about 10 bug bites (all on my legs).

    We heard that the lychee jam was delicious, but didn’t have time to try it in Mauritius, so we bought some at the airport and have yet to sample it.

    I’m still recovering from the time change, so I will slowly be uploading some pictures and writing more posts on the wedding and our trip, so stay tuned for more!

    Love,

    jen

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