 I do my best thinking when I'm walking and I do my best walking - early in the morning.🚶🏻♀️ It's not that I just love lacing up my tennis shoes as soon as I roll out of bed, but I live in the South, so walking (and all other outdoor physical activity) is best completed early in the morning - so as to avoid any unnecessary heat stroke.🥵 Morning walks aren't so bad though.👟 Early morning exercise really helps set the tone for the rest of my day. And it's no coincidence that the number of steps that I take around the neighborhood in the morning is directly related to the number of things that I have to sort out in my head.🤯  Heading out the door, first thing in the morning is the goal but that means that I don't often take time to drink a cup of coffee or even sit down to eat breakfast before my walk. Most mornings I grab a granola bar to nibble on while I'm lacing up my sneakers, but on special occasions - I go to the freezer for some much needed pre-walk energy biscotti. And by special occasions, I mean, Tuesday. Walks are sweeter with biscotti. 😂 Chocolate and Mint are a match made in heaven. Don't even try and debate me on this issue.🤣 I also love biscotti so it only makes sense that I would make a Mint Chocolate Chip Biscotti. The only thing that I wish that I would have done differently would be to add a drop of green food coloring to the mint dough to tint so that it looks more "mint-like."  Mint Chocolate Chip Biscotti Mint Dough 6 Tablespoons butter, room temperature ⅔ cup sugar ¼ teaspoon salt 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder 2 teaspoons vanilla ½ teaspoon mint extract 2 large eggs room temperature 2 cups all-purpose flour ½ cup andes mint chips Chocolate Dough 6 Tablespoons butter, room temperature ⅔ cup granulated sugar ¼ teaspoon salt 1 Tablespoon vanilla 2 large eggs room temperature 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder ¼ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder 1 teaspoon espresso powder ½ cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
 Bake 15 minutes. Flip. Bake another 15 minutes.
 Ciao!
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 Here I am in a it's not as bad as it looks scenario again.😅 I feel like I'm in this situation more often than not lately. Most of my meals are accompanied by a "taste it before you judge it" disclaimer lately because the presentation has been lacking. We can all agree that it takes extra effort to make food appear as delicious as it tastes. And recently, I've been consumed by other projects and I just haven't dedicated the time to highlighting the appearance of my meals. And since you can't taste this amazing avocado chicken salad, you're going to just have to take my word for it that it's soooo much better than it looks. 😂  I feel like I've applied that motto to other areas of my life as well. Not just food. I have a tendency to downplay injuries with the justification that it's not as bad as it looks. That's also what I say when I want to downplay the minor scratches or dents in my car when I describe them to my husband.😅 When I bring home so many grocery bags that they don't fit on the kitchen counters. When I let a pot of pasta water boil over onto the stove because I wasn't paying attention. Or when I accidentally drive the tractor over a pile of rocks and into the stairs in the backyard. 🤪 Yes, that really did happen and I actually started explaining the situation to my better half with "it's really not as bad as it looks." 🚜 (He hasn't let me drive the tractor since that day. 🤣) Clearly, I utter the phrase it's not as bad as it looks a lot.😅 In the case of this Avocado Chicken Salad - just don't judge it by it's appearance. If you're a guacamole fan - you will LOVE this chicken salad recipe.🥑 And bonus - the recipe makes more dressing than you will need for your salad so you can scoop up the leftover guacamole with chips.  Avocado Chicken Salad Dressing 1 1/2 ripe avocados 3 Tablespoons buttermilk 2 Tablespoons sour cream 1 1/2 Tablespoons lime juice 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 1 garlic clove, minced 1/2 teaspoon onion powder Chicken Salad 3 cups cooked chicken, shredded 1/4 cup roasted corn 1/4 cup red onion, diced 1 Tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped
Process dressing ingredients in food processor until smooth.  Add chicken to dressing and toss to coat.  Add remaining ingredients and season with salt and pepper.  
Ciao!
Happy 4th of July!!!
Beer is one of those things that looks super appealing to me but I've just never acquired a taste for it. And yes, before you start emailing me - I've tried the fruity and the seltzer beers too.😅 Beer is just not something that I enjoy. Fun breweries are super trendy now and I'm not above visiting and ordering a hard cider or even a glass of wine at a brewery when it's available.🍷
My summer drink of choice is a boozy lemonade.🍋 To me, there's nothing more refreshing than an ice cold, homemade lemonade with a shot of vodka or rum and a garnish of fresh fruit. I like to order a spiked lemonade when we go out but I also enjoy making it for myself at home on a hot, summer day. A lemon, some sugar and some rum is all I need to make a refreshing summertime sip. 🍹  Lemonade Rum Punch 2 ounces Jamaican Rum 4-6 ounces fresh squeezed lemonade ice orange slice fresh strawberries
 Garnish with an orange slice and a fresh strawberry.
Ciao!  When you're birthday is a week after Father's Day - you get a single dual purpose cake.🤣
It hardly seemed reasonable to make a big Father's Day cake (for 3 people) and another cake, a week later, for a birthday celebration. I mean, I like cake as much as the next girl, but one should only consume so much cake in one week. 🎂 So instead of 2 separate desserts, we celebrated with a solitary spectacularly decadent edible creation halfway between the 2 events. One cake + two signs = efficient baking. 😅 A decadent chocolate sponge cake layered with light, fluffy chocolate mousse and frosted with a cool and creamy chocolate buttercream is certainly a cake worthy of celebrating multiple events. If you're a fan of chocolate - this cake is for you. If you're not a chocolate fan ... what is wrong with you? Just kidding. (Sort of. 😂)  Chocolate Mousse Cake Mousse 8 ounces dark chocolate 5 Tablespoons butter 10 egg yolks, room temperature 1/4 cup sugar 4 egg whites, room temperature 1/2 cups heavy cream Cake 2 1/2 cups flour 1 1/4 cups dutch process cocoa powder 2 teaspoons baking soda 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 2 1/2 teaspoons salt 5 eggs, room temperature 3 cups sugar 1 1/4 cups brewed coffee, room temperature 3/4 cup butter, melted 1 1/2 cups creme fraiche Icing 6 cups powdered sugar 1 1/2 cups dutch process cocoa powder 2 1/4 cups butter, softened 1/2 cup heavy cream 2 teaspoons vanilla
 Ciao!
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