roasted asparagus (with bacon) | a recipe

i just felt like i needed to include that (with bacon) up there, because duh. it's bacon.

asparagus has never really been my favorite food. i can tolerate it, but only to an extent. this recipe changed that up a bit, i mean who can resist cheese + bacon on anything??

and the best part, it literally takes minutes to prepare. 

ROASTED ASPARAGUS
1 bunch asparagus
2 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
a few slices of bacon, cut into smaller strips (you can also use turkey bacon, like i did)
a drizzle of olive oil
shredded mozzarella or parmesan cheese (i used a bit of each)
salt + pepper

directions:
spread your asparagus stalks out on a baking tray. grab a few stalks and wrap that bacon around 'em. (i didn't nearly wrap everyone because that was way to much effort, but i tried to make sure i had some bacon somewhere in there every few stalks, just to make sure the flavor spread.)
throw on your garlic and drizzle a little olive oil over it.
shake on some parmesan and pop it in the oven at *475 for 8-10 minutes.

(i added a little more mozzarella and then popped it back in the oven until it melted.)

eat. (yes, that's a command.)

xx. marcia.

a video for your monday.

"and those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you." 

- psalm 9:10 -

i've been (almost impatiently) waiting ever since early spring for this to come out so i could share it with you guys. it was such a blessing to be able to be a small part of this project and have the voices of the body and people i dearly love echoing the names of Jesus. 

if you take the time to just stop and watch this, i promise you, it's worth every second.

these are the names of God, from Genesis to Revelation. this is the God same God who created my heartbeat and breathed out the stars with the same breath. He is majesty! 

xx. marcia

PROJECT 365 LIFE: week 17

 WEEK FOURTEEN  

127. happy monday!

128. still my all time favorite meal. 

 128. happy things include: feathers, old photographs, paint chips, and a letter from my dearest friend. 

129. never deny chocolate cupcakes. 

130. sunshine after rain >>

 131. we won't even talk about the goof that happened on this night.

 132. or this one. #wemayormaynotberelated

dark chocolate drizzle cupcakes | recipe

After several of you requested the recipe for the photo of cupcakes I posted in this post, I decided to make another batch and post the recipe because they really are the best. 

I've never been able to make perfect cupcakes from scratch. They always seemed to go wrong somehow. But, these babies. oh goodness. I don't know how many times I repeatedly said, "These are the most perfect cupcakes ever." while they were still baking. I'm positive it's the buttermilk in the recipe. 

So without further adieu....

DARK CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE CUPCAKES

recipe adapted from here

1/2 cup butter

2 oz semi sweet baking chocolate (you can use an unsweetened bar, but be sure to add extra sugar to make up for it. talkin' from experience here. :P 

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup buttermilk (if you don't have buttermilk on hand, add 2 tsp of white vinegar to 1/2 cup of milk and wallah... buttermilk. just be sure to let it sit for a few minutes for the vinegar to do it's magic)

Melt the butter, chocolate, and the cocoa together in the microwave. Microwave until the butter and chocolate are melted, stir with a fork until the cocoa lumps are dissolved. 

Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in another bowl. (Yes, this is important, don't just add everything in with the liquid and mix it then, baking powder lumps aren't cool. Once again, speaking from past experience.) In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla together until smooth. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and whisk until smooth. Add half of the flour mixture, then half of the buttermilk. Stir until everything is just combined. DO NOT OVERMIX, guys, I repeat. DO NOT OVERMIX. You'll loose the light spongy cupcake texture. The batter will be very thick and spongy like, but that's just the buttermilk workin' it's magic. 

Bake for 15-18 minutes at 350*, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Makes 12 cupcakes.

BUTTERCREAM FROSTING:

1 cup butter, softened

3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream the butter and powdered sugar. Add vanilla extract. Add milk until desired consistency is reached.  Frost the cupcakes any way you please. 

DARK CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE:

6 oz. semi sweet chocolate, melted. 

Melt the semi sweet chocolate until it's smooth and drizzle-y. (I wanted my drizzle to be a super dark chocolate, so I added some cocoa powder and a little milk.) 

*If your chocolate gets to thick, warm it up a little or add a touch of milk. 

With a fork, drizzle back and forth over your frosted cupcakes. 

Now eat. 

(seriously, that dark chocolate though.)

xx. marcia

PROJECT 365 LIFE: week 16

---------------------------------------------------------------WEEK SIXTEEN -------------------------------------------------------------------

121. good stuff.

 122. i think my favorite thing about being visually impaired (aka having to wear glasses) is that taking them off = instant bokeh. #photographerslyfe

 122. favorites

 123. happy dance like a chicken day! (no srsly, it's legit. i'm not kidding.) also: i think our chicks are going through the current "ugly teenager" stage, yeah, that's it.  

 124. window reflections.

 125. sweet potato fries, with extra crispy. ;)

 126. happy yellow flowers

xx. -marcia
p.s. i need to start posting these weekly instead of having three in one week. :P