Follow:

Style

Travel

Home and DIY

Browsing Category:

Food & DIY

    Food & DIY

    Strawberry & Mint Agua Fresca

    June 9, 2014
    Since it has been extremely hot these past few days, I thought that it would be a good idea to start sharing some of my favorite Summer recipes on the blog. The first recipe that I’m going to share with you is for a delicious Strawberry & Mint Agua Fresca, which is super easy to make. I have a soft spot in my heart for aguas frescas because they always remind me of my childhood Summers; my mother and my abuela (grandmother) often made different types of aguas frescas such as horchata and other various fruit drinks. Other than the childhood nostalgia that they ignite in me, what I also enjoy about aguas frescas is that they are always a great alternative to store-bought juices and soft drinks, since they are made with fresh ingredients. I really hope that you enjoy this recipe, and that you use it often this Summer!
    Strawberry & Mint Agua Fresca Recipe
    INGREDIENTS:
    3 1/2 cups of water
    1 1/2 cups of pure cane sugar
    2 16-ounce containers of fresh strawberries (chopped)
    Mint leaves (according to taste)
    1. Blend the chopped strawberries, pure cane sugar, and 1 1/2 cups of water.
    2. Leave the strawberry mixture in the blender, and slowly start blending in mint leaves according to taste. This mixture makes a strawberry and mint concentrate, which you can freeze and use to make agua fresca at a later time.
    3. Pour the strawberry and mint concentrate into a large pitcher, and stir in 2 cups of water.
    4. Serve over ice.
    Optional: If you’re really looking to cool off from the heat, you can also pour the agua fresca into popsicle molds for a delicious frozen treat.
    —————–
    I have to admit that I’m glad that I decided to post a recipe on the blog this week, because I definitely didn’t have the energy to get dressed and take outfit pictures this weekend. This past week of work just left me feeling drained and tired, so I spent most of my free time this weekend in my pajamas. All I accomplished was laying on my bed and binge-watching the second season of Orange is the New Black. I still have a few episodes left in the current season. However, I have decided that from now on, I will limit myself to an episode a week so that it feels more like a treat. It’s so hard to do that because this season is so good!
    Another reason that I’m trying to limit my television time is because I’ve let go of many of my hobbies, and I’ve made a habit of spending too much time in front of a computer. I don’t read as much as I used to anymore, and I also haven’t been keeping up with creative projects other than this blog. I need to make time to experience the world around me.
    xoxo
    Helen Grace
    Food & DIY

    Vegan Mixed Berry and Caramel Crumble

    May 19, 2014
    Even though I’m usually not a fan of sweets other than chocolate, recently I’ve had a major craving for pastries and baked goods. I think that I have Instagram and Pinterest to blame for my newfound sweet tooth, since I’m constantly being bombarded with pictures of delicious food over social media. Unfortunately, these days the weather in California is way too hot for me to even think about turning on the oven in my kitchen. In order to curve my craving for sweets, this weekend I decided to adapt a recipe for a Vegan Jewel Fruit Tart with Caramel Filling that I had made a while back for my friends’ New Year’s party. I love that this recipe is perfect for hot weather because it is super easy to make and your refrigerator takes the place of an oven.
    As you can probably tell from the title of this post, my adaptation didn’t turn out quite as I expected. As I was experimenting with making the crust, I realized that the mixture that I had made had a more crumbly texture than the one in the original recipe.  Since this blog is all about experimenting, instead of starting all over, I decided to keep the crust as is in order to see what I came up with. The result was this delicious Vegan Mixed Berry and Caramel Crumble that I now have the pleasure of sharing with you.
    VEGAN MIXED BERRY AND CARAMEL CRUMBLE
    INGREDIENTS:
    CRUST/CRUMBLE BASE
    2 cups of walnuts
    1/2 cup of shredded coconut
    1 and 1/2 cups of pitted dates
    CARAMEL MIXTURE
    1/4 cup of almond butter
    1/4 cup of maple syrup
    1/4 cup of melted coconut oil
    1/2 tsp of cinnamon
    1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
    TOPPING
    Fresh of frozen berries of your choice
    INSTRUCTIONS:
    1. Blend 2 cups of walnuts, 1/2 cup of shredded coconut, and 1 and 1/2 cups of pitted dates in a food processor until the mixture forms a paste-like texture.
    2. Pour the mixture unto a greased pan and press it against the bottom of the pan. Refrigerate this for 2 hours to allow the crumble base to harden.
    3. To make the caramel mixture, blend 1/4 cup of almond butter, 1/4 cup of maple syrup, 1/4 cup of coconut oil, 1/2 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract until smooth. Then, pour the mixture over the walnut and date crust.
    4. When ready to serve, place fresh or frozen berries on top of the mixture (If you let the berries sit on top of the crumble base for too long, the mixture might get soggy). You can serve the berry crumble alone, or with a side of ice cream.
    I hope that you like this recipe and that you find time to make it at home. If you do decide to make this at home, please leave me a comment and let me know how it turns out.
    Sincerely,
    Helen Grace
    Food & DIY

    D.I.Y. Floral Fascinator

    April 9, 2014

    Photos by Sarah Veyna

    Outfit Details:
    Free People Lace Dress
    M.A.C. Lipstick in Rebel
    D.I.Y. FascinatorAs promised, today I’m bringing you a D.I.Y. post and teaching you how to make a floral fascinator. Whenever I think of Springtime fashion, some of the things that come to mind are floral prints and accessories. This fascinator is a great way to add a bit of life to your outfit. Plus, it is very easy to make, and makes for a great accessory for an easter or wedding outfit–or any outfit, really. If you’re interested in adding one to your wardrobe, here’s instructions on how to make your own:

    Supplies:

    1 Hair Clip, 12 Glass Beads, 1 Stiffened Felt Sheet, 3 Fake Flowers in 2 different colors (1 big, and 2 small), 2 Feathers, A Needle, Thread, and Scissors
    Step 1

    Step 1:

    First, you are going to start off by cutting a square piece of stiffened felt in a rectangle that is 3″x 5.” You can experiment with a bigger size, but keep in mind the size of your hair clip if you do, because you don’t want the fascinator to be too heavy and fall off.

    Step 2: 

    Place the clip against your piece of felt, and make sure that the grip of the clip is facing the outside end of the rectangle. Sew on the hair clip to your piece of felt. I recommend criss-crossing your stitches so that your clip is better supported and doesn’t slip off later.  If you want, you may also use glue to add some extra support.

     

    Step 3:

    Once you have sewn on your clip, turn the piece of felt around and sew your feathers on the opposite side. You will sew a feather on each corner of your rectangle. You want to make sure that you sew your feathers on the end opposite of the hair clip, otherwise your fascinator will be inverted.

    Step 4:

    Separate your fake flowers from the stems, and get rid of any pieces of plastic in the flowers. You will only be using the fabric petals for this project.

    Step 5:

    Next, you are going to sew on a flower over each feather. To do this, first pull a needle through the felt and all of the fabric petals.

    Step 6 and 7:

    Before you pull the needle back through the felt, pull your needle through two glass beads. After you’ve sewn on those two beads over the fabric petals, pull the needle through the felt and fabric petals again, and repeat. This will be the center of your flower.

     

    Step 8:

    Repeat Steps 4 and 7 on the opposite side.

    Step 9:

    Finally, after you have finished sewing on your two small flowers, you’re going to take your bigger flower and sew it right underneath them, creating a “triangle.” Make sure to repeat steps 4-7 as you do this, and you’re done making your floral fascinator!
    I hope that this floral fascinator tutorial was easy enough. However, please let me know if you have any questions. I’m still learning how to develop these posts, and would appreciate any feedback on how to make this tutorial better and more clear. I will make sure to update this tutorial based on any questions that you may have.
    Thank you for stopping by my blog, and have an amazing rest of the week! I hope that I have inspired you to get crafting this weekend.
    Much Love,
    Helen Grace