Day 53 and Recipe[S] #58 and #59...

Oops. I did it again. This whole dieting thing is really difficult whenever Stephen comes into town. To top it all off, I am apparently not as amazing as I think I am when it comes to weight loss. Saturday morning, I reweighed myself after BOASTING on my blog about my amazing feats of dieting, and it turns out I had gained back nearly TWO pounds. Luckily, I had already resolved to eat whatever I wanted in moderation this weekend, and somehow, don't even ask me HOW this all works out, but I have ended up losing nearly all of those two pounds again even while eating pizza, frozen yogurt, root beer floats, and this amazing meal I am about to share with all of you. I don't know how eating a tortilla on Friday night caused me to GAIN weight, but eating anything I wanted caused me to LOSE weight. Ugh, whatever.

ANYWAYS, long story short, this entry is more about sharing a pretty epic meal I prepared for the Bairds on Sunday night. I love Sunday dinners. I also love treats after Sunday dinners, and although I know the first recipe I am going to share with you isn't necessary a BAKED good, it's worth mentioning. Ladies and gents, I bring you Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta and Cookies-n-Cream Oreo Fudge Brownies.

Recipe #58: Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta (as found on http://amysnewkitchen.blogspot.com... SHOUT OUT to a wonderful fellow blogger)

All right, this recipe came to be because I knew I had wanted to make something for the in-laws this weekend as a way of celebrating Stephen coming to visit us all. As I sat in his parent's kitchen on Saturday morning, his mother mentioned that for Valentine's Day, she and Dave had been treated to a meal of Chicken Cordon Bleu with some sort of sauce on it, and she could not stop raving. As luck would have it, at that precise moment, I remembered I had just posted a chicken cordon bleu recipe I had really been wanting to try on my Pinterest, one that I knew Stephen would really enjoy. I had to make a few adjustments to the recipe since I was feeding a larger crowd than the recipe called for, but it worked out beautifully... other than overheating the broiler, Dave putting the oven rack too close to it, a fire erupting on top of the bread crumbs, Ava screaming bloody murder when the fire alarm went off, and Stephen burning his hands on the cookie sheet we set the garlic bread on... all in a matter of five minutes. Well played, Bairds.

Ingredients:

Serves 6

1 lb. Pasta (I actually used a pound and a half of penne pasta, since there were actually eight of us, plus one 2-year old)
1 cup Chicken Breasts, cooked and cubed (I doubled it to 2 cups of chicken breasts. Luckily for us, Stephen and I found these strips of chicken that were called "stir fried strips" that worked perfectly!)
1 cup Ham, cooked and cubed (Again, we up-ed it to 2 cups)
1 1/2 cups Milk
8 oz. Cream Cheese (softened)
2 Tbsp. Dried Minced Onion
2 cups Swiss Cheese, shredded
Salt
Pepper
Cayenne Pepper
1 cup Panko Crumbs
1/2 cup Butter, melted 


Directions:


1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over med-high heat. Salt it and add the pasta; cook until al dente. Drain and return to the pot. Add in the chicken and ham and toss to combine.
    - The blog said to let it cook for 11 minutes. I think I kept mine on for 15 all together, because at 11 it wasn't done.

2. Preheat the broiler. In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, cream cheese and minced onion over low-medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until it becomes a smooth texture (about 5 minutes). 
     - A word of caution: set your broiler to LOW. LOW people. On top of that, at this point, Ava had come into the kitchen and was DEMANDING to eat pieces of cubed ham... so while I was holding her, Stephen took over. I was preoccupied, so when he started asking questions about what to do, I accidentally told him to combine the Swiss cheese and this point. DON'T DO THAT. He ended up having to scoop the shredded cheese out... way more work than needed. Sorry, love.


3. Stir into the pasta mixture. Stir in the Swiss cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste.
     - We also added immense amounts of Cayenne pepper at this time because the dish needed a kick. Luckily, the pepper did the trick. It gave the dish a nice back burn, which sounds weird, but it's what was needed, otherwise I think it would be too bland. 

4. Transfer pasta to a baking dish and top with Panko crumbs. Pour melted butter over crumbs and broil until browned (I gave it 4 minutes). 
    - HA HA, this is when all heck broke loose. We also forgot the butter, but I don't think it's needed.


This ended up making two relatively large pans of pasta, PERFECT!

Next up, brownies! I am always scouring the internet for brownie recipes (because brownies are my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE treat!), and this one looked too fun to pass up- chocolate, ice cream, hot fudge, and Oreos? SIGN ME UP.


#59: Cookies N' Cream Oreo Fudge Brownies (as found on http://www.kevinandamanda.com)

Ingredients:

1 box Brownie Mix (I used Ghirardelli's double chocolate brownies, with chocolate chips in the batter)
eggs & oil (with the Ghirardelli mix, it ended up being 1/3 a cup oil and one egg, I believe)
1 heaping half cup (6 oz) Cookies & Cream ice cream (they were out of cookies and cream [at least, the kind on sale], so we opted for mint chocolate chip. MY FAVORITE!)
1/4 Cup hot fudge topping (chilled or room temp)
Oreo Cookies (Double Stuff babes...)


Directions:


1. Preheat oven & spray an 8×8 baking dish generously with cooking spray. 
     - In my case, the box of brownie mix called for a 325 degree oven... and I couldn't find an 8x8 pan, so I ended up using a 9x13... probably not the greatest decision, I'll explain later.


2. Combine brownie mix, eggs, and oil as directed on the back of the box, but do not add the water. 
    - OOPS, I added the water. Mistake #2.


3. Add ice cream and hot fudge to the brownie batter and stir to combine.


4. Pour half of the brownie batter into the baking dish, layer with Oreos, then top with remaining batter. Bake for 40-50 minutes or as directed on the back of the box.
     - I ended up keeping mine in for about 60 minutes.


All right, so, these brownies were GREAT... they just turned out looking a little less than perfect. When Stephen and I tried spooning them out, they were surprisingly very crumbly. On top of that, the sides ended up getting very crisp and dry, while the inside pieces were perfect. Sigh. We ended up piling tons of the ice cream and hot fudge on top of the brownies, and no one seemed to notice. They were stinkin' delicious all the same!

Day 50 and Recipe #57...

Just a quick post to let you all know- I'm amazing. Despite eating like C-R-A-P all week, consuming one too many cookies at my kids' Valentine's Day party, and even sprinkling a little cheese on my scrambled eggs (Eeep!), I LOST WEIGHT! Wahoo! As of this morning, I am a flat 134 pounds. I'm attributing this to my INTENSE workouts this week, as well as what I am assuming is my increased metabolism. I tried kickboxing and hot yoga for the first time, and I gotta tell you, they kicked my rear! For some reason, even though I can SLIGHTLY keep a beat and stay up to pace with the rest of my Zumba class, I have NO coordination when it comes to kickboxing. Seriously. I'm not sure if it's just because all the movements are harsh and... JABBY... but I couldn't keep up! Yoga was very relaxing, until those silly high school girls behind us started giggling uncontrollably (I was convinced something must have been poking out of the back of my pants, and became WAY too self conscious) and answering their phones. I'm sorry, cell phones shouldn't be allowed in yoga, case closed.

ANYWAYS, let's look at my goals-

Weight as of December 29th, 2011- 146.6 pounds
Weight as of today- 134 pounds
Total weight loss- 12.6 pounds
Weight loss to go until goal #2- 4 pounds

Yay! I also managed to make a super simple recipe for the blog. Tuesday was Valentine's Day (my least favorite holiday... ugh), and I decided to make treats for my kiddos. I wanted a super easy, no-brainer recipe that I could make a large batch of, and luckily I saw this particular recipe pinned ALL OVER Pinterest. It's good... but unfortunately for all of you, I was in such a hurry to chug these snacks out, that they didn't LOOK as good as they tasted. I'll just show you the pin, whattya say?

Recipe #57: Chocolate Pretzel Buttons (as found on http://www.musesofmegret.com)

Ingredients:

2 bags Hershey’s Kisses or Hugs (nut-free), or a combination of both (I used one bag of original Hershey's Hugs and another bag of caramel Kisses)
1 large bag M&M candies (All of the stores I went to at the time were out of plain Valentine's M&M's, so I used peanut butter, with delicious results)
1 bag pretzel rounds or squares

Directions: 


1. Unwrap the kisses and hugs. Place tin foil over the cookie sheets to help prevent sticking. 
     - Tin foil is pretty necessary. My kisses ended up over melting, and got ALL OVER the cookie sheet.


2. Place one kiss on top of each of the pretzel squares. Place the cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven for 2 and a half to three minutes until the kisses soften and start to melt. Remove from oven and immediately press one M&M into the center of each kiss. Cool slightly, and then transfer sheets to the refrigerator for a few minutes to set.
     - All right, I slightly improvised on this step. The first batch I kept in for only two and a half minutes, and they were a mess. The candy over-melted, so when I placed a M&M in the center, the kiss collapsed and melted all over the cookie sheet. To try to avoid another situation like that, I went ahead and brought the time down to a minute and a half, and then I went and stuck the treats in the freezer over night to REALLY set them up. That worked much better; however, I kept them in my fridge at school that day to avoid having them melt. 


That's it. So deliciously poppable and addicting. Make these. Preferably in pastels for Easter. DO IT.

Day 43 and Recipe #56...

It was a pastry EMERGENCY! I needed to make a batch of cookies fast for a deserving young lady... so I found a VERY easy cookie recipe that took NO time to whip up, only used four ingredients, and was SUPER tasty. Oh my goodness. Don't take MY word for it, meet my brother:

I kinda feel like this was one of those segments that they used to put at the end of "Reading Rainbow" where the kids would recommend certain books appropriate to the theme of the episode, and they'd close with "But don't take my word for it!" and cheesy 80's segue music would come on. Anyone else feel that way? Just me?

ANYWAYS, as for my weight loss, I have been naughty. Naughty naughty naughty. And it shows. I'm up slightly from my lightest, and I am sure it's going to sky rocket some more with Valentine's Day this week. I am trying to stay positive in that even though I have been eating like C-R-A-P, I really have stayed relatively stable... which doesn't make it okay. But my muscles are getting stronger and I can stay on the treadmill for MUCH longer, so that's saying something right?

Recipe #56: Rolo Cookies (as found on sixsistersstuff.com)

Ingredients:

1 pkg. Rolo's
1 box Devils Food Cake mix
2 eggs 
1/3 c. oil

Directions:

1. Mix cake mix, oil, and eggs. Take a small ball of dough and form a ball around the rolo. (Only use enough dough to cover the rolo so it can spread through the cookie.)

     - Fun! Seriously, don't go nuts though, or you will run out of dough. This recipe made JUST enough for three batches... this is what mine looked like.

2. Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 7-8 minutes. Yields about 3 dozen.
     - Here's the goodie-goodness:

3. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired.

     - I did desire, and it made them all so pretty.

THAT'S IT, and they are awesome! Unfortunately, the girl I baked them for is DIABETIC... but luckily the Maxfield's enjoyed them. Thank you for taking MOST of them off my hands (again, I haven't been the greatest. I'll be good after Valentine's Day, I swear!)

Day 38 and Recipe #55

I have had a crappy week. My current science unit at school is sucking the life out of me. I have had no social life. I am trying not to make passive-aggressive comments about people in my life who are irritating the snot out of me. And on top of that, I miss my fiance more than he will ever know. With that being said, I needed to bake. So I did. And that's really all the explaining I need to make for this post.

A quick play-by-play of where I am goal wise:

Starting weight- 146.6 pounds

Current weight- 134.4 pounds

Total weight loss since 12/29/2011- 12.2 pounds

Weight loss left- 4.4 pounds (until goal #2)

My Super Bowl Sunday/Valentine's Day treat:

#55: Marbled Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies (as found on http://www.thenovicechefblog.com)

Ingredients:

Red Velvet Layer:
3 1/4 cups flour
2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 large eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon red food coloring
2 teaspoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons milk

Cheesecake Layer:
2 8oz packages cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13 x 18 jelly roll pan with butter or spray with Baker's Joy. (I didn't have a jelly roll pan that large; I did, however, have a 10 X 15, which I used with this particular recipe, and it turned out just fine. I did have to adjust the baking time, which I'll get to later. Promise. I also made sure to not only cover the pan with foil, but coat the foil with cooking spray as well. I am NOT taking my chances.)

2. In large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, red food coloring, and white vinegar. (My mom saw me pouring the vinegar into the batter and was slightly turned off by it. I don't blame her- vinegar should only be used in dressings and dyeing Easter eggs.)

3. Combine the dry and wet ingredients, until completely combined. The batter will be a really thick, almost moldable texture...but don't worry, that's what you want. (P.S.- we're talking super thick, like, Play-Doh thick. The batter kept clogging the mixer up, so after scrapping the dough off of it for the third time, I used my hands to knead all of the wet and dry ingredients together. Worked like a charm.)

4. Remove 3/4 cup of the batter and place it in a medium bowl. Whisk in the 2 tablespoons of milk (into the 3/4 cup of batter you just took out). Set aside the 3/4 cup batter.

5. Pour the remaining batter into the prepared jelly roll pan. Using a spatula, smooth out the batter to reach all the edges.

6. Now, in your stand mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla, beating until combined and there are no lumps. Pour the cream cheese mixture on top of the red velvet layer and smooth mixture till it reaches all the edges.

7. Drop spoonfuls of the remaining red velvet batter (that you mixed with milk) onto the top of the cheesecake layer. Drag the tip of a knife through the red velvet and the cheesecake layers to create swirls.

8. Bake for 30 minutes, rotating half way through, or just until the center is set and it no longer jiggles. Let cool completely on a wire rack before cutting. Use a medium sized heart cookie cutter to create the perfect Valentine's Day treat! (I ended up leaving mine in for a total of 45 minutes, because I am always afraid of killing someone off with undercooked cheesecake. On top of that, I was lazy, and didn't feel like using a cookie cutter, so I just cut bars. I think ended up getting 24 out of the pan. Perfect!)

These are good- soft, cheese-cakey, and rich. And yes, I allowed myself two, because DANGIT, I had a bad week and I've met my FIRST weight loss goal. Be forewarned though- yesterday morning, prior to baking, I was 133.4... I gained a pound in a day, and I am blaming these bars.

Here is a picture of the bars from the blog, because my pictures didn't do it justice...

And here are gratuitous shots of my wedding dress... because people wanted to see it... and I want to run around the house in it. And Stephen helped me pick it out, so don't stress about that tradition of the groom accidentally running into these pictures. When am I ever traditional?

Day 35: 135!!

Just a quick post to tell you... I DID IT! Goal #1 has been accomplished! This morning the scale read 135 and it felt FANTASTIC. I haven't been that small since my days before WSU, so at least over 6 or 7 years ago. My pants all hang off of me, I am swimming in my shirts... and I couldn't be any stinkin' happier about it.

So here's how it's going from here on out- although I have met the initial goal, I'm not going to start the next phase of the Dukan without Stephen meeting his weight goal (luckily he's close). The next phase would entail the two of us still eating lean protein and vegetables, but we can also incorporate all of the fruit we want, as well as two servings of whole grain bread a day and two carbs, plus one serving of low fat cheese. As AMAZING as a piece of nine grain toast sounds right now, I'm holding off. I am, however, starting to eat a little fruit again, just to allow my body to adjust a little. Today I had a half a ruby red grapefruit and a honeycrisp apple and let me tell you what, they were the best, most juicy pieces of fruit I have ever consumed. That good. I cried a little over the grapefruit at lunch (it's the little things!).

ANYWAYS, this means I am forging ahead with goal #2- drop to 130 pounds. Now, considering how much my weight loss has slowed over the last couple of weeks, I am giving myself plenty of time to do this. Also, I have revised my plans for treats. With the fear of plateauing, as well as beating myself up over not losing as much as quickly as I was, I will be rewarding myself at both 132.5 and 130 pounds. I deserve it. Much as I deserved those lime green and white bikinis I bought myself today!

Starting weight: 146.6 pounds
Current weight: 135 pounds
Total weight loss: 11.6 pounds
Weight until goal #2: 5 pounds

LET'S DO THIS.

Day 30 and #53... and #54...

Yeah, I'm not kidding. Guilty as charged. This weekend was a BIG baking weekend. A big weekend in weight loss, too. My brother's 20th birthday was last night, and of course, I needed to bake something in honor of the momentous occasion. On top of that, with all of the dieting taking place, I have been literally searching out any excuse to bake for others. Just being in my kitchen element, surrounded by butter and sugar, seems to make me feel a little more normal, since my diet of strictly protein and vegetables ISN'T.

In regards to the diet, this week has been an emotional yo-yo. After baking that GORGEOUS rainbow birthday cake last weekend for Papa Baird, I went ahead and let myself sneak a little piece- under Mothers Baird's INSISTING of course- and it was exactly what I needed. So colorful, soft, and just the little bit of sweet something I needed to take my mind off of the dieting. Nervously stepping on the scale the following morning, I was pleased to see I hadn't gained any weight... no no no, the weight gain happened THE FOLLOWING morning. You have no idea what a slap in the face it was to see my weight go back up to 137.2. It actually hurt my feelings. To make matters even worse, I managed to plateau this entire week, for no good reason! I took it very personally, smacking myself upside the head for even thinking it would've been all right to try that cake. Thankfully, this morning, I am at 135.4... my smallest I have been in YEARS. I'm thinking the plateau was due to the fact that for about two weeks I wasn't able to make it to the gym, whether it was due to traveling OR the weather. With that being said, the gym is becoming PRIORITY #1. Let's take a look at my goals-

Initial weight: 146.6 pounds
Current weight: 135.4
Weight loss: 11.2 pounds
Weight left to go until initial goal: 0.4 pounds

Whoo hoo! This feels pretty good, although I am NOT celebrating until I hit 135 flat. It is then I will buy myself a treat. For now, I am NOT resting easy. Who knows when I'll run into another plateau? I'll keep you updated when that goal actually happens! Yay!!

Now let's get to the real reason you're reading this blog. Recipe #53 and #54. The first is for my brother. I offered to make him dessert, but my mom really enjoys making us/buying us something tasty for our actual birthday treat- instead, I asked if he'd want me to make him breakfast the following morning to eat before going to work. After looking through my Pinterest (where there are TONS of DELICIOUS choices), he asked for something I had been eager to make for weeks- Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake. Yum... two of my favorite things combined into one treat: breakfast AND cake.

This recipe (with the spoonful I had allowed myself to try) is GOOOOD. The top of the cake gets all nice and crusty, the inside is moist, and the blueberries... oh goodness, my diet is making it so hard to be good.

#53: Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast Cake (as found on http://www.alexandracooks.com)

Ingredients:

½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tsp. lemon zest or more — zest from 1 large lemon
7/8 cup* + 1 tablespoon sugar** ( * 7/8 cup = 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons and ** This 1 tablespoon is for sprinkling on top)
1 egg, room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 cups fresh blueberries
½ cup buttermilk


Directions:


1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Cream butter with lemon zest and 7/8 cup of the sugar until light and fluffy.
    - All right, true confession time. I was NOT able to finish this cake before my brother left for work for a variety of reasons. The first was, I woke up at 6:30 thinking I could have the breakfast ready before his 8 o'clock shift. Bad move. First of all, I wasn't officially up until 6:40 (it's Saturday morning, give me a break!), and on top of that, it took me a solid 15 minutes to FIND our lemon "zester" (it was literally RIGHT in front of me the entire time. Yup. Solid work). 
    - P.S. Have I mentioned my beef with lemon zest? All of the work just to get the skin off of a lemon, and then you just leave the large lemon on the counter to rot. I am DETERMINED to cut it up and use it in water this weekend, mark my words!

FREAKIN' ZESTER!

2. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Meanwhile, toss the blueberries with ¼ cup of flour, then whisk together the remaining flour, baking powder and salt (all of this in separate bowls! That's three bowls!)

3. Add the flour mixture to the batter a little at a time, alternating with the buttermilk. Fold in the blueberries (Alternate half of the flour mixture into the batter, then 1/4 a cup of buttermilk. Alternate until all the flour and buttermilk is gone, mix, and then fold in the blueberries).

4. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan (or something similar) with butter or coat with non-stick spray. Spread batter into pan. Sprinkle batter with remaining tablespoon of sugar. Bake for 35 minutes. Check with a toothpick for doneness. If necessary, return pan to oven for a couple of more minutes. (Note: Baking for as long as 10 minutes more might be necessary.) Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving [My cake took about 45-47 minutes in the oven, take note!]

There you have it. I wish I could have a big, old slice. Look at this, perfection in a pan!

YUMM-O!!

Now, recipe #54 came to be for a variety of reasons. First of all, last week, one of my friends and I decided that we needed to run cookies to a couple of other girls we know because we quickly realized that their birthdays were both last month, and we did NOTHING to recognize this. Michelle volunteered to go get them cards, and I of course stepped up to the plate to bake (... and I will admit, it was half out of selfish reasons. I just really wanted to bake, GOSH!). On top of that, I also needed to bake for my students, because I had promised them that if they met their goals in our winter M.A.P. science test, I would bring them a treat. With that being said, I needed to do something festive for the birthday girls, as well as kid-friendly. I found a FUN recipe...

I love all things cake batter. After making cake batter blondies for Mothers Baird back in October, I kept finding other "cake batter" recipes I wanted to try- cake batter pancakes, cake batter rice krispie treats, cake batter cake pops, cake batter truffles, and finally this one.

#54: Cake Batter Pudding Cookies (as found at http://www.chef-in-training.com... love this BLOG!)

Ingredients: 

1 1/2 sticks (or 3/4 cup) butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 (3.4 oz) package instant vanilla pudding mix
3/4 cup yellow cake mix
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
2-1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
sprinkles

*Note- the pictures will show a doubled recipe, since I needed to make 30 cookies for the kids, plus extras for the girls.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Stir together flour, salt and baking soda and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars together. Add in pudding package and cake mix and beat until well blended. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until smooth. Add flour mixture slowly until well incorporated.

3. Mix in sprinkles. Roll into 1" balls and place on greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 F for 10-12 minutes.

    - Used an entire bottle of sprinkles between two batches of these cookies, and I really don't think that was enough. Also, I ended up keeping my cookies in the oven for about 15 minutes, because the middles were definitely not done at the suggested time.

There you have it! Another simple cookie recipe brought to you by your's truly. Now, I have to tell you though, I let myself try one of these cookies (*gasp* but what about your diet?!), and I was slightly disappointed. On the blog I pulled this from, the women who had commented on the recipe said it was "So delicious!" and "One of the best they've tasted!" LIES. It's good, don't get me wrong... but it's basically just a fluffier sugar cookie. That's it. I was hoping for this ooey, gooey pudding-like cookie, but instead I literally just got your run of the mill, could've-probably-bought-this-in-the-store-for-a lot-less-money-and-saved-a lot-of-time sugar cookie. Oh well, my kids will really enjoy it, I'm just worried about letting down the women I baked for...

Hi, welcome to every school teacher's nightmare- baking for 30+ students.

You cookies, you disappoint me so!

Day 23 AND Recipe #52...

I know, I know, I know. I am a bizarre dieter. I seriously can't stay away from the baking though. Especially after the weekend the Tri-Cities is having. The snow began on Tuesday night, and it dumped and dumped through Friday afternoon, ending with a nice coating of ice supplied by a solid two days or so of freezing rain. Kennewick was literally shut down- I was slightly amazed that we were even told to go to school on Wednesday. Thursday and Friday I didn't dare venture outside the house, since I HATE winter driving, and highways were being closed around the area due to ice. Yeah, no thanks. With that being said, it had been quite a while since I had managed to make it to the gym (not since the Tuesday before I left for Provo), so I was really nervous about my weight. I have great news though- like, jump-up-and-down-you're-so-excited kind of news... I am, as of today, 136.6 pounds! I am at my lowest weight since I initially lost all of that weight way back right after I had moved back from Pullman. That feels pretty darn good, especially considering I only have 1.6 pounds left to go before I hit my initial goal! Holy cow! And in only 23 days, I am pumped!

I am a little nervous about hitting a plateau now, since this is where I plateaued last time. My diet was a little different though- I was spending a lot of time counting calories, and I would literally starve myself for a day so I'd be able to go out with my friends at night and eat whatever I wanted without thinking about it. Probably not the best decision. The diet is getting harder and harder to follow though- my parents' house is just full of WAY TOO good food. The worst was when my mom and I made a less than satisfying fajita salad on Thursday night, and my brother, bless his heart, decided to take out corn chips and start dipping them into our salsa right in front of me. I literally cried watching him.

I've gone ahead and put some fun little treats in place for myself when I do reach certain weight goals. When I hit 135 flat, I am going to go ahead and purchase a couple of bikinis I'm taking with me to Hawaii this summer. When I hit 130, I am going to purchase a tanning package. And IF I feel crazy enough to attempt 125, I am going to bake a chocolate cake, and Jenna and I are going to eat it all by ourselves. Because we're worth it... and this will all be worth it, when I'm here. Check out my Maui webcam.

http://livesurfcamhawaii.com/maui/kaanapalibeach.htm

Yessss! Cannot wait. On top of all of this, I ALSO went ahead and baked ANOTHER project. I found a really fun looking DIET recipe on Pinterest that I wanted to try, but I scrapped that idea when I decided I couldn't charge into the Bairds' home with diet food in hand. There'd be a mutiny for sure. Instead, I took the technique behind the pinterest recipe, and made my own cake using ingredients from the store. So, no, before you even judge, this is NOT a homemade recipe, but the amount of effort it took should made this a valid entry in my baking challenge.

#52: Birthday Rainbow Cake (as inspired by http://www.omnomicon.com)

Ingredients:

*One package of white cake mix (I used Pillsbury Moist Supreme Classic white, because it was on sale)
     - Using this mix, I had to also use 1 cup of water, 1/3 a cup of oil, and three eggs.
*2 cans of any sort of frosting you might like (I used Betty Crocker Rich and Creamy Rainbow Chip. It was hard to decide between this and the funfetti Pillsbury frosting, but I realized I prefer my sprinkles to already be incorporated into my frosting)
*Food coloring (I used Betty Crocker Classic gel food colors- the woman on the blog said the gel works better than the drops. Fair enough)

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. While it is heating, mix the batter, water, oil, and eggs together (the cake mix box says to mix the batter with an electric mixer for 2 minutes)

2. After mixing the batter, split it equally among six bowls.
     - The blog said to be very precise. I chose not to be, and my two cakes ended up being uneven. No big deal, I frosted them when all was said and done, so it doesn't LOOK bad. Anyways, I started out scooping a 1/2 cup of batter into each bowl, then a 1/4, and then I ended up eyeballing the rest to try to make it all even.

3. Dye each bowl a different color of the rainbow according to the directions on the gel colors box.
    - Welcome to my messy nightmare.

4. Grease up two 9-inch circle pans. Pour half of the first color of batter into the pan. In this case I used red. Then I poured in half of the orange over that, alternating the colors, ending in purple. In the other pan, I started with purple and ended with red. I spread the batter out in the pans evenly, and this is what they looked like-

Isn't that cool? I just wish I could EAT IT later.

5. Place both of the pans in the oven and then bake it according to the directions of the cake mix. For me, it was 27 minutes, which was wonderful for the centers, but turned the tops a kind of off brown color. Oops. I blame it on my parents new, wonderful convection oven.

And this is the final result- after allowing the cakes to cool, I spread frosting between the two cakes, and then put frosting all over. It looks adorable... now here's hoping it tastes good! I'll keep you updated...