Sarah Hearts

My in-laws were in town last weekend from Baltimore. We had a great visit and I always enjoy hanging out with them. We got  My mother-in-law gave us a jar of her homemade blueberry jam. It’s made from blueberries she purchased are her local farmers market in Maryland. It’s not overly sweet and has the perfect tanginess of the berries. She suggested using it on toast of a warm, flaky biscuit (yum!). I’ve been wanting to get around to making muffins so I thought why not combine both of them? The result: super simple vanilla muffins filled with her homemade blueberry jam. It’s my muffin-but-tastes-like-a-cupcake recipe so it’s ok to eat them for breakfast. They would be equally yummy with a scoop of vanilla or berry gelato and severed warm as a dessert.

I based the recipe for the muffins on this one. I used 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1 cup + 2 tablespoons of cake flour. I love how cake flour makes muffins fluffier. In this case, fluffy is good because it creates lots of “pockets” for the jam.

I used a cupcake filling tip (does anyone know the official name of this?) and placed the jam in a pastry bag.

I placed the metal tip in the center of the muffin and filled each one with about one generous tablespoon of jam.

I let the muffins cool on a wire rack for about 15-20 minutes before I started filling them.

For a pretty presentation, I recommend not piping much jam on the top of the muffin. It will run, much like ink runs on a wet paper.

And that’s it! Super easy and so yummy! You can whip 2 dozen of these up in less than 45 minutes.

{All photos above by me}

Today’s wedding board is for my new friend, Haley. We met last month in our connect group. Connect groups are Summit Church‘s lingo for small groups. Kevin and I are hosting a group in our home of young married couples. It’s been a lot of fun! We meet once a week and we’ve been getting to know each other and discussing how we can love people more like Jesus.

Haley and her fiancé Kevin are getting married this October in Kevin’s parents backyard. They are looking for several ways to make their wedding “rustic/vintage/outdoor/understated beauty” says Haley, while on a budget. I put together the board above to provide a few ideas. One of the cool things about being in a connect group is the community you form. We are all pitching in to help make Haley and Kevin’s big day even more special. During the upcoming weeks, I will be posting new tutorials of decorations and such that we’re making for their wedding. I’m really excited!

1. Haley’s aunt is making her dress (she’s a seamstress, how awesome is that?) and this is her inspiration.Gown by Allure Bridals.
2. There are a lot of tree in the yard so we may make tissue paper pom poms to hang from them. Image by Nessa K Photography.
3. Burlap is cheap and looks so lovely as table runners. I also love these simple floweral arrangements. Image by Vitalic Photography.
4. Fabric Rose Wreath by FaSewLaStiches is a great source of inspiration. Fabric roses would make great boutonnières. A wreath, like the one shown, would look cute hanging on a tree or gate in the yard.
5. Babies breath is such a beautiful, delicate flower and it’s so cheap! I think bouquets of only babies breath are gorgeous! Image by Tiffany Bolk Photography.
6. I posted a tutorial for washi tape cupcake flags earlier this year. I never thought to write on them! They make such cute markers. They could be used to label desserts, as shown above, or placed in little tiny pots with herbs as place cards (that could also double as guest gifts!).  Image above by Nessa K Photography.

I always loved choosing a new backpack for school. I’m a huge fan of unique textiles and organization and backpacks fulfilled both those loves. There are so many great options this season. These are my picks for back to school. Which is your favorite?

1. Deux Lux Canvas Backpack from Urban Outfitters, $69.99.
2. Dakine Prom from Zappos, $50.
3. The Northface Recon from Zappos, $99.
4.  Pop Quiz from Herschel Supply, $69.99.
5. Unknown via Pinterest. (If you find where to purchase this, please let me know)
6. Branch Backpack from Haiku, $118.

Today is my 60th color palette! I can’t believe I’ve made so many! Yoohoo!

Today’s color board is inspired by a vintage classroom. I’m loving the green hues with the muted golden yellows. It’s a minty perfection. My living room currently has this sage green hue but I never thought to add pop os gold. Where would you use this palette?

Color board by me. Photo by Common_Life.

Happy August, everyone!

I can’t believe that fall is almost here! Well, it doesn’t exactly feel that way at all here in Florida, but I’m hoping the heat and humidity will subside soon and cooler temperatures will be on the way. Wishful thinking, huh?

Since we’re in the process of melting here, there’s really only one remedy for a hot day: ice cream, of course!

A couple of weeks ago, I did a weeklong series of ice cream recipes, since July was National Ice Cream Month. Sarah asked me to do a post on mint chocolate chip ice cream, and though I had every intention of making a batch happen, I got a little burned out on frozen treats.

Apparently I only needed a two-week break from ice cream before I was ready to get in the kitchen and whip up a new batch. Oh ice cream, I can’t stray from you for long!

I wanted to mix it up and make something a bit more unique, so I settled on ice cream bon bons! They’re pretty much the cutest things ever. I saw a recipe for them in an issue of Food & Wine, and tried making them a few months ago. Sadly, they were an epic failure; the melted chocolate completely liquified the ice cream, and there was nothing stabilizing the chocolate to make sure it set up and hardened.

This time around, I took my time to ensure that these bon bons would be much more successful! I’m happy to report that these ice cream bon bons are so simple to make, and impossible to mess up! Kids would love to get in on the fun of assembling them, and what could be more fun than enjoying a little frozen bon bon on a hot day?

The mint chip ice cream is deeply flavorful, and reminds me of my childhood; visits to the ice cream parlor around the corner for waffle cones stacked tall with minty, chocolatey scoops of ice cream.

If you don’t want to make your own ice cream, you could easily use a store-bought ice cream to make these bon bons in any flavor you like! You could also top the bon bons with sprinkles or crushed peanuts before the chocolate hardens for an extra fun touch!

Ice cream bon bons: the sweetest (and definitely most adorable!) way to beat the summertime heat!

See you next month, with a delicious recipe that’s perfect for ushering in the beginning of Autumn!

Sweetly,

Jaclyn
food + words

{The yummy recipe and gorgeous photos were created by Jaclyn, thank’s lady!}

Today I’m continuing with the back to school theme so I made a wedding board for a school-inspired wedding. I think this is the sweetest idea for a couple who were high school sweethearts or for those that met in college. School is usually associated with fall, however, I think this theme would also work for a late summer wedding.

The color palette can be kept to a minimum, with touches or golden yellow or apple reds. It would even be cute to incorporate plaid too! I love the idea of using chalkboard for all the signage. This is such a cute theme that can add charm without break the bank.

If you were to have a theme wedding, what would your theme be?

Wedding board by me, great images by:
1. Via The Sweetest Occasion.
2., 3., & 5. via Martha Stewart : Real Weddings.
4. via Elizabeth Anne Designs.

This weeks posts are going to have a similar theme– back to school. Many people are going to hitting the books by the end of the month so I wanted to share some of my favorite school supplies. I was always the kid who couldn’t wait for back to school shopping. The new school year meant the possibility of a new a lunch box, book bag, folders, pencils boxes and more. Today’s post highlights one of my favorite supplies, lunch boxes. I love to pack my lunch because I can eat healthier and safe a few bucks.

Lunch boxes aren’t just for students, the few featured above are handy for anyone who dines away from home. Do you bring your lunch to work or school? If so, what’s your favorite lunch box food? A particular sandwich or wrap?

1. Alexander Girard Lunch Purse (I love the small “love” charm)
2. Thermos Raya Flower Print Lunch Duffle
3. Lunchskins reusable snack and sandwich bags (I have these, they are great! They are even dishwasher safe)
4. Klip-It Lunch Cube (a simplified bento box that keeps everything separate)
5. 16oz. Glass bowl with Lid (5% of the purchase goes to the Food Bank of New York City)
6. Zojirushi Mini Bento Stainless Lunch Jar Set (It even includes a cute little chop stick contianer)
7. Owl Lunch Bag by Skip Hop (They have many more animals on their site, perfect for kids or the kid in us)

We just got back in town from LA late last night after a super long 14 hour day of traveling. I never had as many airport issues as we did yesterday. My first flight was delayed minutes because they had to attach a new lock and hinge on a door on the airplane… because the existing one was bent and couldn’t close. Crazy, right? That meant we had to wait on the plane for 50 minutes. My second flight was about 2 hours longer than scheduled because we had to fly around and kill time until the lightning storm cleared. The weather in Orlando didn’t clear within the hour or so and we were running out of fuel, so we landed in Tampa. This added about 2.5 hours to our flight. Kevin’s flight was delayed in Orlando and he had to sit on the plane 3 hours before they would let the passengers de-board. It was an absolutely crazy day to travel to Orlando. Despite all the craziness, VidCon was super fun! I got to hang out with friends and make new ones.

Now that our travels are behind us, I am going to try my best to get back on track with the blog. I can’t think of a better way to get reacquainted than with a new month and a new wallpaper. This wallpaper features one of August’s seasonal veggies and one of my most favorite vegetables. Enjoy!

Download this wallpaper in the following sizes:

1280 x 800 wallpaper with calendar
1920 x 1280 wallpaper with calendar
2560 x 1440 wallpaper with calendar
iPad wallpaper
iPhone wallpaper