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@jadetran-blog
(Recipe) DIYFO's Chewy Banana-Brown Sugar Sandwich Cookies w/ Strawberry Banana Filling (egg-free)
In another life, I run DIYFO (Do-it-Yourself. For Others) - workshops, events, and happenings that teach people how to make awesome DIY projects, while also giving back to charitable organizations. I've been craving these cookies lately (getting ready for the end of Girl Scout Cookie season, maybe...), the recipe for which originally appeared on my DIYFO blog. Enjoy!
These amazing little morsels of goodness are basically what would happen if a banana muffin and a Fig Newton had a strawberry baby. They’re egg-free and can be vegan pretty easily (see note in ingredient list). Our team has gobbled these hearty little cookies up.
Makes 1 dozen sandwich cookies What you need (cookies):
3/8 cup butter (about 3/4 of a stick) or vegan: 3/8 cup vegetable shortening + 1 tbs. vegetable oil
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 banana, mashed
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
splash of milk (almond milk, soy milk, or coconut milk will also work)
What you need (filling):
1/2 cup strawberry puree
1/2 banana, mashed
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. pectin / gelatin / cornstarch (optional, but will speed the thickening process)
Preheat oven to 375°F
What you do:
Cream together butter and sugar on medium until smooth. Add in banana and vanilla and beat on medium speed until pale (about 1 minute).
Add baking soda and salt, and gradually add flour until a soft dough forms. If the dough becomes too crumbly, add in milk, 1/2 tbs. at a time until the dough can be rolled until a ball.
Roll tablespoon-sized amounts of dough into balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet, 2” apart.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until golden brown on the edges. Remove to cooling rack and let cool. NOTE: the cookies will be crispy, but after assembling the sandwiches, will become a decliciously soft and chewy texture.
Meanwhile…
In a small saucepan, mix together berry puree, banana, vanilla, and sugar, and heat on medium-high heat until boiling, stirring constantly.
Turn heat to low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan.
Stir in pectin (sprinkle in gently to prevent clumping) and simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat and let cool (you can refrigerate it to speed up the process)
When cookies and filling are cool, assemble sandwiches, using 1 tbs. of filling for every 2 cookies. Store in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy!
How to Be Powerful, Likable, and Female: Learn From Jenna Lyons
Ann Friedman tells you how, in her NY Mag piece. Hint: it involves being, wait for it...yourself! (read it here)
(image courtesy: NY Magazine)
DTLA Bars I Have Known & Loved (Part 1: Upstairs Bar, Ace Hotel)
So, I LOVE cocktails. Good ones. Interesting ones. As in, if it doesn't have at least one ingredient that I have to confidently pretend I've heard of, I'm not that interested. Fortunately, living in LA, I get to sample delicious concoctions all the time, and then either turn my nose up at them, or tap my neighbor on the shoulder and tell them they have to try whatever it is I'm having.
But what good is a delicious drink without atmosphere? Downtown has some of the most beautiful rooftops, patios, and dens within which to imbibe. This week, I'll share a few of my faves....
PART I Ace Hotel (Upstairs Bar)
Upstairs Bar (image courtesy: Kishani Perera)
SoCal hipsters rejoice: Ace Hotel’s Upstairs Bar is finally done – complete with two outdoor spaces, a heated wading pool, and a variety of craft cocktails (all trendily infused with Aperol, Pernod, and sundry other bitters).
The hotel, adjacent to the newly renovated United Artists theater of yore, is a mecca for beautiful people from near and far (including the staff, who are all really friendly). Soak in the lobby, then get thee upstairs to the rooftop for DTLA views (including the famed Jesus Saves sign), lots of pillows, rope sculptures, and enough heat lamps to keep you toasty, wherever you sit.
The cocktail menu changes every couple of months – trust me, I keep tabs on this – right now, I recommend an Old Fashioned (on tap), the Kentucky Mai Tai (bourbon, mezcal, liqueur de pêche, Cynar) in an icy-cold aluminum tumbler, or the Amazing Frozen Drink, a mysterious pink concoction that the Slurpee only wishes it could be. Various wine and beer available, but I say go straight for a cocktail!
The downside: snacks are lacking. Sure, you can buy Red Vines, chips, and M&Ms, but if you want bar bites (or if it gets too crowded), go downstairs to chef Ken Addington's LA Chapter, for nosh and a cocktail. Nibble on gougères, washed down with a Sherry PIckford!
Go there for: Saturday and Sunday afternoon cocktails (weekend evening lines can be crazy), people-watching, and conversations with hip strangers you will never see again.
Ace Hotel Upstairs Bar: 929 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90015 (213-623-3233)
I'm getting married.
I've been engaged for nearly a week. In that time, I have gotten uproariously drunk in celebration (sorry Mom, likely my sole reader), injured people with fist bumps (these rocks hurt), and mastered the "I'm engaged!" hand flip – the showier half of the Single Ladies hand gesture.
I have also woken up in the middle of the night (multiple nights, actually) with subconsciously constructed to-do lists, and pinned something like 200 items to various Pinterest boards in 22 minutes of uninterrupted Kroll Show.
I'm also feeling the full gamut of emotions that an engaged American woman feels, including the one that makes me feel hesitant to be "that girl" – the one with the ring pics plastered on Facebook, and starting a wedding blog that implicitly indicates she has any idea what she's talking about.
But I succumbed.
And here I am, chronicling what's sure to be a social, emotional, and financial roller coaster. Welcome. Buckle your seat belts. There will be commemorative portraits near the end.
inspiration for my loft overhaul...
Le sigh, I love this. ♥♥♥
Just in time for your 2 o’clock break / 5 o’clock escape…this fantastic (and superbly edited) supercut of every subway scene you’ve ever seen in a movie…
See the whole Lonny article here.
By Flour Shop.
Look at these delicious doughnuts from Astro Doughnuts & Fried Chicken. Photo by Scott Suchman (from The Daily South)