Hair & Beauty, Nails

Ombré Nail Art

Mar 31, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

One of the things that I love about “Florida Living” is that you get to wear sandals all year if you want to. This also means that girls are much more likely to have year round pedicures and manicures. Since I like to change colors much more than my budget would allow for going to the salon to have the professionally done mani/pedi, I do them at home. One of the nail trends that has become very popular is the Ombré or Gradient nails. For those who don’t know, this technique uses graduating shades of one color or different colors, and blend from one shade to another.

I had seen quite a few examples on Pinterest, and thought it was time to give it a go. There were two pins that convinced me that I could accomplish this technique. The first was from the ladies at The Beauty Department and it gave detailed pictures and instructions for different shades of one color.

http://thebeautydepartment.com/2012/04/pretty-polish-idea/

The second is from Laynie’s blog, Layniefingers, with instructions and a video. I always like to watch videos so I can see exactly how someone else does something. I also liked how the pastel colors looked so perfect for Easter and spring. Does that remind anyone else of an Easter Egg?

http://layniefingers.blogspot.ca/2012/03/another-way-to-do-sponged-gradient.html#comment-form

So after watching the technique, which is relatively simple, I went to my local Sally’s Beauty Supply store to find the nail polishes. I thought this might be a little expensive since both blogs instructed the use of 3-5 colors, but China Glaze had put out this Ombré kit that included 4 full sized nail colors and 10 application sponges all for the sale price of two polishes! These kits come in Teal, Pink and Grape. (Disclaimer: I did not receive any compensation for using this product. It was just easier to buy it all in a kit.)

I also had the Orly Top 2 Bottom for base and top coat, polish remover, a cotton ball and some cotton swabs – just in case of user error.

First I put the base coat and let it dry. Then I put a coat of the lightest color on my nails and let that dry, too. The instructions on the packaging said to paint the stripes of polish onto a flat surface. I used a strip of parchment paper and went from light to dark.

Blot the nail color with the sponge, then dab across the nail while slightly moving up and down to blend the colors.

Lastly, finish with a top coat to smooth it out and set the manicure.

The results are pretty, easy and impressive. It does get a bit of polish on the skin surrounding the nails, but that’s what the polish remover ans swabs are for.

Results for the Ombré Manicure are as follows:

Overall Score: 5 Pins

Accuracy: The two blogs gave great instructions that were similar to the directions on the packaged kit. Whether painting the polish onto a surface or directly onto the sponge, the results were the same. I only did one pass of the sponging, so my colors weren’t quite as vivid as the picture on the package, but it directed to do a second pass for brighter results once the first one dried. 5 Pins

Difficulty: The technique is an easy one to achieve since you are looking for blending rather than precision. It’s a great way to get trendy nails if you’re a beginner to nail art. 5 Pins

Time: This definitely takes a little longer than just polishing the nails, but not by a lot. I usually do a base coat, two to three color coats and a top coat which takes a little under an hour. This can be done in about 1 hour for base coat, solid coat, sponged gradient coat and top coat. 4 Pins

Cost: The cost of a basic salon manicure is roughly $20 on sale. I bought the China Glaze kit on sale for $11, and it will do a lot of manicures with the 4 full sized bottles of polish. However, if you have to buy everything separately, it would be closer to the salon price, but you’d still get multiple manis out of it. 4 Pins

Practicality: You can do this with any polishes you might already have on hand, so buying lots of polish is not necessary if you have a decent collection. You can switch up the color combinations for seasons, holidays, even add glitter, crackle polish or stamps over the top for super custom looks. It’s easy, quick and not very expensive, and you don’t need to have the hands of an artist to make it look good. Very practical – 5 Pins

DIY & Crafts, Organization

Tip Tuesday – Make an Embellished Grocery Bag Container

Mar 26, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

Plastic bags are not a very environmentally friendly way to transport groceries or anything else. However many of the reusable bags I get, it seems like I either leave them at the house, in the car, or have given them away, full of something for a friend. So no matter how many reusable bags I get, I still seem to accumulate a ton of the plastic disposable bags. They have their uses – when you can find one that isn’t crumpled beyond recognition and doesn’t have any holes.

My personal pet peeve is that there isn’t a good home for them – that is until I saw this pin. Jen from Tater Tots & Jello shows how to roll the bags so they pop out of a wipes container one at a time, and the container holds about a dozen bags.

http://tatertotsandjello.com/2011/07/summer-social-guest-project-make_21.html

Perfect! I had to test this.

I pulled out the pile-o-bags and started to flatten and fold them as Jen instructs.

Make sure to get the air out as you flatten them.

Fold the flattened bags in half the long way. Make sure you have a dozen bags for a standard wipe container.

Overlap the bags slightly.

Fold the handle of the first bag up at a right angle to the rest of the bags.

Start rolling the bags pretty tightly and evenly starting with the end that has the handle pointing up. This will be the part that sticks out of the wipes container.

Drop the roll into the bag.

Put the top on, making sure to pull the first handle out. And there you have it – organized grocery bags! This is perfect for the car, boat, camper, office desk drawer… the possibilities are endless. And just think of all the money you could save on Christmas gifts!

Jen’s blog gave further instructions for making the container pretty, but I didn’t have all of the materials for that step. I’m more of a cook than a crafter. However, I think I’ll look for some contact paper in a color scheme and design to match the container. I can handle that.

Now for the results.

Overall Score: 5 Pins

Accuracy: The instructions in the blog were precise and easy to follow. The container held exactly 12 bags without having to roll them up overly tightly. They pop out perfectly, too. 5 Pins

Difficulty: This was a simple idea that was simply perfect. Flatten, fold, roll, done. 5 pins

Time: The entire project took abut 10 minutes. That includes the time removing the label from the container. 5 Pins

Cost: FREE! It doesn’t get any cheaper than used grocery bags and a used, empty wipe container. 5 Pins

Practicality: This is EXTREMELY practical! The organizing of plastic bags is great, but don’t forget the added value of having these organized bags conveniently where you want/need them. 5 Pins

Food & Drink, Side

Easy Slow Cooker Refried Beans

Mar 25, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

Mexican food is one of my favorite cuisines; right up there with Italian, Greek, French, Indian, German, Puerto Rican, Turkish, Southern, Spanish, Americana… Okay, I just like food. A LOT. I’d love to eat and drink my way around the world in a culinary tour; the kind that would take months and months or even years. Now THAT’s a fantasy!

Back to Mexican food – a Fiesta for your mouth. One of my dearest friends, Martha, is Mexican and makes some of the best food all from scratch, and almost never uses a recipe. She was a real cook when it was still popular to use boxes and mixes and frozen cheats. In fact, she had so much trouble trying to figure out how to make a blue box of mac and cheese that I had to go over and show her how it was done. We still laugh about that.

Martha made the most amazing refried beans, from scratch of course. They would be simmering on the back of the stove for hours, making her house smell soooo good. (*insert drool here*) So when I saw this recipe for refried beans in the crock-pot, I was muy emocionado (very excited).

http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2011/08/29/recipe-easy-slow-cooker-refried-beans/

The recipe is from Lisa’s blog, 100 Days of Real Food. Since my family is trying to eat a more real and healthy diet, this was a major bonus. On to the Pin Test!

The ingredients are real, honest, and basic.

Add the water and stir,

…then cook on high for 8 hours. Can I just take a moment here to say how wonderful it is to cook with a crock-pot? Put in the ingredients, set the temperature, and walk away. How great is that!? Add to that the wonderful aroma wafting through the house – oh, yum!

Fast forward 8 hours, and the beans are fully cooked, there is very little water left, and I’m salivating.

The recipe said to remove the onion chunks and drain the water before mashing. I didn’t see any water so I removed the onion and commenced with mashing. I guess I didn’t think about the liquid that the beans had absorbed over the past 8 hours, and should have tried to drain them after all. Even so, the texture didn’t seem overly runny and I couldn’t wait to dive in. After a quick taste check I thought the beans were a bit bland, so I added a bit more salt and pepper, then plated them for my husband’s approval.

Let me mention that my husband is part Mexican and has been eating home-made refried beans since he was able to eat solid food. He still thought they were lacking something. We diced up some onion and mixed it in with a bit of Tabasco. That helped a lot, but these were definitely not like the ones I remembered from Martha’s kitchen. My husband said they are traditionally cooked with lard, oil, or some kind of pork meat that would render fat and flavor. I called Martha to get her opinion, and she said they missed the second cooking step, which is to fry them in a skillet while mashing them, which is where they get their name – REFRIED BEANS – of course!

So now for the results.

Overall Rating: 4 Pins

Accuracy: The recipe seemed to work well, but it lacked the authenticity of flavor that comes from making refried beans the traditional way. I will definitely make these again, but will add a little more jalapeno, will cook them with a bit of salt pork for the flavor, and will fry/mash them in a skillet with a bit of oil or bacon. Watch for the update when that happens. For now, 3 Pins.

Difficulty: This dish was simple to put together in the crock-pot, and the steps were few and easy. 5 Pins

Time: Although it took 8 hours of cooking time in the crock-pot, the prep and finishing time was roughly 15 minutes total. 4 Pins

Cost: Beans, onions, garlic and spices are cheap cheap. Even if you had to buy every ingredient, this would cost roughly $5-6. 5 Pins

Practicality: I think most everything is best home-made, and this is no exception. As stated before, I would definitely modify the recipe a touch, but I prefer the crock-pot method (and being able to walk away, prepare before work, etc.) to the stove-top method and needing someone at home to keep watch. 4 Pins

Hair & Beauty, Nails

Tip Tuesday – 5 Minutes Nail Polish Removal Tutorial

Mar 19, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

As I said in my last post, I love the idea of having pretty nicely polished nails. Unfortunately, that means when the polish gets messed up, or if it lasts long enough to have outlived it’s welcome (I think that’s happened about 3 times in my adult life), then you need to get the polish remover, some paper towels, cotton balls, jack hammer, etc. to take it off. OR if you’re like me, you need to remove what’s left after picking off the edges or pealing off as much as possible. I know… I know… It’s absolutely horrible for your nails. One of my bad habits.

At least it was until I saw this great pin on how to remove nail polish with only one (1) cotton ball, only one (1) cap full of remover, and all in only 5 minutes.

http://gingerbreadmanne.blogspot.ca/2010/09/5-minutes-nail-polish-removal-tutorial.html

This sounded too good to be true, but according to Anne from her blog, Gingerbreadmanne, it was not only possible, but totally doable. Since I had two hands with chipped/picked at nail polish, the cotton balls and the remover, I decided to give it a shot.

Here are the tools. Ignore the polishes and sponges. They’re for another post.

Unroll the cotton ball.

Tear into two strips.

Tear one strip into 10 pieces, save the other for wiping any polish left behind.

Dip the edge into a cap full of polish, then place on each nail. I did one hand at a time, as instructed on the blog, then waited one or two minutes. I had pink polish on, so it’s not easy to see through the cotton, but it’s noticeable in the next picture.

I used a part of the remaining cotton ball strip to wipe off the cotton pieces on my fingers. See the light pink on the cotton?

The Pintest results for this Tuesday Tip are as follows:

Overall Rating: 5 Pins

Accuracy: This method allows the polish remover to do it’s thing. I’ve tried it a few times, and it gets the polish off really well. If you have glittery polish, it might require a little bit more wiping, but much less work than using the traditional method and gentler on the skin than soaking your fingers. 5 Pins

Difficulty: It was easy to unroll the cotton ball, and that was the hardest part. 5 Pins

Time: Normally it takes about 15-20 minutes of dabbing cotton balls or paper towels with polish remover, then wiping and wiping. This really takes roughly 5 minutes for both hands.

Rated 5 Pins

Cost: Using only 1 cotton ball (and still have leftovers), and a cap full of polish remover is much less waste than the traditional way. I get the big bottle of pure acetone from Sally’s Beauty Supply Store when it’s on sale for about $4 and a bag of cotton balls is roughly a buck. 5 Pins

Practicality: This method saves time, money, supplies and is very easy to do. 5 Pins

About Pintesting, Beverage, Food & Drink, Frozen

The Best Ever Copycat Shamrock Shake

Mar 18, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

Pintesting Best Ever Copycat Shamrock Shake

I love St. Patrick’s Day! My dad always said I was a wee bit Irish – about half of my pinkie fingernail – but that’s enough for me to claim it with a smile. I think it all went to my toes and that’s why I love Celtic dancing. One of the things I love about St. Patty’s Day is that a certain hamburger chain with an Irish sounding name (or is it Scottish?) brings out the Shamrock Shakes.

Those smooth, green, minty shakes are one of my favorite traditions. Rather, they used to be. Between all of the chemicals in them (there are 54 ingredients according to this Huffington Post article!) and trying to lose some weight (820 calories in one 22-oz shake – YIKES! – also from the same article), I had pretty much given up these Spring delights. *sigh*

That is until I found this Pin for the Best Ever Copycat Shamrock Shake recipe from The Slow Roasted Italian. I was feeling lucky, so I grabbed my blender, some basic ingredients, and set off to make something magically delicious. (No, there is not any cereal with marshmallows in the ingredients list.)

The Pintesting:

It was going to be simple. Just put the shake ingredients into the blender, and blend. I put in the ice cream, milk, green food coloring, and went to put in the peppermint extract – but the bottle was empty. Don’t you just love it when someone puts an empty container back into the pantry or fridge? (GRRRR!!!) Now what was I going to do?

Thankfully I had another mint extract. Whew! On with the Pin Test.

I blended the shake ingredients together. The color looks good – very much like the Shamrock Shake.

Heavy cream + powdered sugar + whip = the best whipped cream. I usually add a few drops of vanilla, but since it wasn’t listed, it wasn’t added.

And here is the finished product – complete with cute Leprechaun-moustached straws and festive sprinkles.

*A note about this Pin Test* Since there are just two of us (the cat is a fussy eater and snubbed the idea of festive milk shakes), I halved the recipe for 2 servings since the full amount makes 4 servings.

The Pintesting Results:

Overall Rating – 5 Pins

Accuracy: The shake was smooth, minty and creamy – just like the Shamrock Shakes. The color was very similar to the original version, too. The texture was perfect – not so thick that it got stuck in the straws and not so thin that it was runny and melty. It was just right. 5 Pins

Difficulty: Put four ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Easy Peasy – 5 Pins

Time: The shake, whipped cream, and festive presentation took about 10-15 minutes. That included the extra time to hunt for an alternative extract. It would take longer to drive down to the nearest McRestaurant and order drive through. 5 Pins

Cost: The ice cream was all that I had to purchase, and that was on sale for roughly $3.00 which is less than the cost of a large shake. Obviously you’d get more than one serving from a container, so I’m giving this 5 Pins

Practicality: This is very quick, simple and cost-effective way to get the taste of a Shamrock Shake at home – without tons of extra chemicals and “fake” ingredients. Yes, I know green food coloring has fake ingredients, so since it doesn’t affect the taste, those who are further along into the eating clean journey can leave it out. Either way – 5 Pins.

Hair & Beauty, Nails

Four Leaf Clover Water Marble Nail Art Tutorial

Mar 17, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

I love the idea of pretty nails. They make me feel so polished (sorry for the pun – okay, maybe not 😉 ) and finished and detailed. Videos of techniques like this water marble nail art are inspirational. It’s so nice to feel pretty – until you have to do something. Seriously, just about anything will make my nail polish chip or smudge. You’d think I did construction or had a job that requires you to repeatedly smash your hand into some horrible machine, or maybe dragged my hands on the road when I walked. Nope! I have an office day job that requires typing. (NOT much manual labor there…) I cook a lot; which means I also do a lot of dishes. Okay, that could be a part of it. But still. I see the TV chefs like Giada De Laurentiis or Laura Vitale, and they always have a beautiful manicure to go along with their perfect smiles and yummy food.

It’s so frustrating to either spend the time doing a manicure myself, or the money to have someone else take the time to do the pampering for me, just to have it all messed up in a day or two – or sooner. But then I think I really want to have pretty hands and polished nails, so I try again… and again… and again… Glutton for punishment, what can I say.

So with St. Patrick’s Day approaching, I thought I’d try a nail technique that has intrigued me since I saw it shortly after I started on Pinterest. Water Marble Nail Art. These are some of the most beautiful designs I’ve seen, and I HAD to try this shamrock looking one. Collette, of My Simple Little Pleasures, made it seem very doable with a detailed video tutorial. So I went to my local Sally’s Beauty Supply Store and bought the color of polish I didn’t already have, picked up small paper cups then went to work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch/?v=ThvYt11z_rs

The Pintesting:

I used filtered water, like the video instructed, then added drops of polish into the cup of room temperature water.

It should look like this,

It didn’t work out so well.

When I tried to make the clover, the polish dragged all over the water and made a mess.

Let’s try this a second time. I went back to Sally’s and bought all new polishes – just in case the 12-month old polish was too old.

After a bit more research, I found that some nail artists use distilled water rather than filtered. So with all new polishes and distilled water, warmed a bit by microwaving it for 15 seconds to bring it just above room temperature, it’s time for the second try.

Here are the concentric circle steps. Still not great, but better than before… here’s hoping.

I was able to make a small clover shape this time. I didn’t worry about it being too small since I don’t have really long nails.

I prepped the nail with base coat and color coat and taped the edges of my finger for easier cleanup.

Poised… and Dunk. I couldn’t take a picture while cleaning up the polish on the water layer but did it as the video instructed.

I couldn’t wait to see the super cool shamrock on my nail but got this blob with no distinct clover or shamrock.

So this failed twice, I’m sorry to say. I loved how it looked and have seen several other nail art videos on water marble nail art that I’m not going to give up yet. Maybe I’ll break down and spend the money on a mani (for the research) and ask some questions to the salon techs. Until then, I’ll stick to simpler nail techniques.

The Pintesting Results:

Overall Rating: 2 Pins

Accuracy: In two attempts, the polish didn’t behave as the video showed. Additionally, the beautiful distinct design didn’t come close to making an appearance. . And finally, the tape on the nails melted into a mess that took a lot of acetone to get off. 1 Pin.

Difficulty: The video made to process seem simple enough, but getting the polish to drop in the middle of the circles wasn’t easy. Not enough polish on the brush, and it wouldn’t let go. Too much, and it would drip before you wanted it to and in the wrong place. 3 Pins.

Time: The whole process took about twice as long as a typical manicure. Had the results worked, then it would have been worth it, but since they didn’t – 3 Pins

Cost: Sally’s had the polishes on sale at 2 for $11. Add to that the cost of the distilled water, paper cups, orange sticks, etc. and it’s a lot for a normal home manicure, but roughly the same cost of a salon manicure. 3 Pins

Practicality: IF this had worked, it would have been a great way to get an awesome mani, but since it didn’t, and since it was a waste of a lot of polish, I don’t think this was a practical way to get a manicure. 1 Pin

Beverage, Food & Drink

Butterbeer Frappuccino

Mar 11, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

Many years ago, when my youngest daughter was in middle school, she was given a very controversial book as required reading in school. As a loving mother who was very involved in my kids education, I was very concerned due to conflicting things I had heard about this book. However, I was also open-minded enough to not rely on the rumors, so I asked for the book and told my daughter that if I read it and thought it was appropriate, then I’d let her read it. If not, then I’d ask the teacher for an appropriate substitute.

It took less than a day to read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. I couldn’t put it down, and I was hooked! Ever since then I’ve stood in line for every book and movie release. I was so excited to go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Orlando and to see the shops of Hogsmead, ride the rides, buy a wand and other Hogwarts apparel, and to try the Butterbeer. Oh. My. Goodness! It was love at first sip! The taste was exactly as I had imagined from every description in the books.

Imagine my surprise and delight when I saw this pin for Butterbeer Frappuccino from the Starbucks Secret Menu. I thought this was a perfect opportunity to see if Starbucks could do some real magic.

http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/starbucks-secret-menu-pick-23-butterbeer-frappuccino/

I ordered the drink and even showed the barista the website so there would be no mistakes.

This is the results minus a few test sips. While it wasn’t exactly like the Butterbeer that I had at Universal or my imagination, it was pretty close and very good.

So the Pin Test results are:

Overall Rating: 5 Pins

Accuracy: While it lacked a bit of the buttery-ness that was in the WW of HP version, the caramel and toffeenut mixture was very close. The cream base of the Frappuccino was perfect without adding the extra flavor of vanilla. I’ve seen recipes for home made Butterbeer that call for cream soda and butterscotch with melted butter that might be a bit closer – maybe – but it would be a lot of work for a bit of uncertainty. Going to Starbucks is much quicker and easier. 5 Pins

Difficulty: Go to Starbucks (or other coffee shop) and order the beverage. 5 Pins

Time: There were several people in front of me in line, so it took several minutes to place and get my order. But since there was no work on my part, and I did get my drink in about 5 minutes – 5 Pins.

Cost: One grande custom Frappuccino was less than 5 dollars, which is quite a bit less expensive than the one at Universal (NOT counting the price of admission). 5 Pins

Practicality: Order drink, pay with the money you got from Gringots. Accio Butterbeer! 5 Pins

Beverage, DIY & Crafts, Food & Drink, Gift Ideas

Hot Chocolate Sticks

Mar 5, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

It was really Cold in Florida this past weekend. I don’t mean cold for Florida or cold for this time of year. It was 36 degrees when I woke up this morning. That’s COLD! Our cat, who insisted on going out last night, couldn’t wait to come in as soon as we opened the door. I know that up north it’s colder by quite a lot, but this is Florida. We would like our warmth back. In the meantime, these Hot Chocolate Sticks from Kristi’s blog, 30 Pounds of Apples, seemed like just the thing to make on a cold day. I saw this pin around the holidays and liked the idea and the gift-ability of them. But it took freezing temps to motivate the Pin Test, so let’s get going.

The Pintesting:

A funny thing happened on the way to this Pin Test… I was gathering all of the ingredients to get started and thought I’d put all of the dry ingredients into one bowl. I had just added the salt when I knocked the bowl off of the counter. (EEK!) My lightning fast ninja reflexes caught the bowl and saved my kitchen, my floor and what was left of my sanity. However, the nicely separated dry ingredients were no longer separated. Oh well, they’re going to get mixed together, and my floor is clean. It’s a good trade.

Here are the rest of the ingredients. I like that the recipe calls for milk and dark chocolates as well as the cocoa. This should give a greater depth of chocolatey-ness.

The recipe says to sift them together but I find that whisking works well for cakes and other pastries, so I whisked. More about that later.

Next, chop up the chocolate into small pieces for better melting.

Put the chocolate in a clean and dry microwave-safe bowl. Heat at 30-second intervals on medium power until two-thirds of the way melted. Stir until smooth.

NOTE: Be patient while melting the chocolate! If you heat the chocolate too high it will seize up and you’ll have to throw it out and start over.

Now pour the melted chocolate into dry ingredients.

Stir to combine.

Do you see those little, unsifted balls of powdered sugar and cocoa? That’s why I was supposed to sift the dry ingredients. If you make this recipe, please don’t try to take a shortcut. Listen to Kristi and sift. It took a lot longer to work out all of the little clumps.

Mix until the chocolate is smooth like a soft tootsie roll.

Fill a piping bag. The mixture is thick so you don’t need to use a coupler or tip.

Then fill the molds.

Finish by topping each one with 4 mini marshmallows and a stick. The next time I’ll use wooden stirrers or bamboo sticks. The paper sticks were cute but began to unravel while stirring in the hot milk.

Now leave them to dry, like I did, or you can refrigerate if you’re in a hurry.

Once they’re dry, pop them out and stir one into 8-oz of hot milk. . .

. . .until dissolved and yummy.

This was a welcome warm treat on a very cold day. One note about possible user error. I had set some of these out at work with instructions on how to use them to make a cup of hot chocolate. Unfortunately, people don’t always read instructions; just ask any guy who’s built anything from a kit. I had about half of the testers tell me how hard it was to eat the chocolate. I recommend putting instructions on each and every hot chocolate stick. That could be really cute with little flags!

The Pintesting Results:

Overall Rating: 4.7 Pins

Accuracy: The recipe was simple enough to follow and I really liked the tip for melting chocolate. The chocolate set up nicely in the molds, and when stirred into the hot milk, gave a nice frothy foamy cup of hot chocolate. The hot chocolate was creamy, rich and chocolaty. I will add a teaspoon of vanilla the next time I make this to see how it affects the flavor. One of my testers noticed that as the milk cooled, the chocolate started to separate and clump a bit. However, that left chocolate surprises at the bottom of the cup, so it wasn’t really a complaint. Just drink it quickly. 5 Pins.

Difficulty: The recipe was simple. I had issues with how thick the chocolate mixture became. Even without a coupler or tip in the piping bag, it was very difficult to squeeze it into the molds. Someone with arthritis or dexterity issues might have to come up with an alternative way to make these 4 Pins.

Time: It took about 2-3 minutes to melt the chocolate and 30 seconds to whisk the dry ingredients. Add about 2-3 minutes to sift the dry ingredients properly (like the recipe instructs). I was going to check on the drying after half an hour and then every 15 minutes after that, but they were set in 30 minutes. 35 minutes – 5 Pins

Cost: The chocolates were the most expensive ingredient, but I used the large Hershey bars. You can usually find them on sale for 2/$5 or less. 5 Pins

Practicality: This was cute and fun to make, and perfect for holiday gifting. However, if you just want a quick cup of cocoa it’s faster to use a packet or add some Hershey’s syrup to a cup of milk and microwave. It does take some extra time to stir until everything is melted. 4 pins

Sunday Reflections

Sunday Reflections – March 3, 2013

Mar 3, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

It’s Sunday, and I thought it would be nice to take a day to be reflective. Rather than do Pin Tests on Sundays, I’d like to share some of the pins that are thought provoking, encouraging, and funny. We’ll call it my day of rest and meditation. I hope you enjoy.

Happy Sunday! Anne

Breakfast, Food & Drink

Mini Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Icing

Mar 1, 2013 by Anne Hernandez

Hooray for breakfast! I could have breakfast food for breakfast, lunch and supper. Eggs (so versatile), fruit and juices, oatmeal, grits, potatoes and veggies. Then there’s the traditional breakfast meat choices of ham, sausage or…. BACON! (Can you tell which is my favorite?) And in my world, breakfast isn’t breakfast without bread or a pastry, such as scones, muffins or cinnamon rolls.

It seems that making dishes into tiny versions of themselves is very vogue now. Shot glass desserts, sliders and tapas are all the rage. Kristin, of Iowa Girl Eats, has brought her shrink-ray gun to the cinnamon roll and given us the mini version. They’re bite-sized and easy to pop into your mouth. This pin was on the Repinly.com top 5 list of the Food and Drink category for much of February, so I decided to give it a Test.

http://iowagirleats.com/2011/11/23/8-minute-mini-cinnamon-rolls/

The ingredients are found in most kitchens. I had a little bottle of real maple syrup from the Cracker Barrel, so I thought this would be the perfect way to use it.

Here’s my “secret ingredient” time saving find – Pilsbury makes a Crescent Seamless Dough Sheet. It’s the same price as the regular crescent rolls, but saves the time of pinching the seams together, as Kristin’s recipe directs.

I rolled out the dough just a bit,

and cut it into two halves.

The recipe didn’t specify whether the butter was to be melted or softened when brushed onto the dough, so I did one half with softened butter

and the other half with melted butter.

Both halves got sprinkled with cinnamon,

and then sprinkled with brown sugar. There wasn’t a noticeable difference by the time the brown sugar was sprinkled onto the pastry.

Each half was rolled into a log.

Each log was cut into 8 pieces. I used a pizza cutter to make quick work of the cutting. It worked, but compressed the dough a bit.

The pieces were placed in the mini muffin tins, cut sides up,

then baked at 350 for 11 minutes.

While the cinnamon rolls were baking I made the Maple Icing.

Whisk the ingredients until smooth, and stir periodically to keep a crust from forming on top.

The mini cinnamon rolls are out of the oven and look like little rosettes.

Plated and glazed, they took about 5 minutes to disappear. They were wonderful paired with a cup of Starbucks Sumatra coffee.

Overall Rating: 5 Pins

Accuracy: The recipe didn’t specify whether the butter should be softened or melted when brushed onto the pastry, but there was no difference in taste or performance. The little pastries had nice flakey texture from the crescent roll dough, and the cinnamon sugar taste was like their super-sized cousins that you can get at the mall. I really liked extra layer of flavor that the maple icing gave. 5 Pins

Difficulty: I admit that I might have “cheated” a bit in using the dough sheet rather than the regular crescent roll dough. However, the time saved was maybe about 3 minutes. Kristen says “they’re really easy”, and she’s right. 5 Pins

Time: The prep took 10 minutes, and the bake time was 11 minutes. Total time was less than half an hour – 5 Pins.

Cost: If you don’t have real maple syrup, that would be the most expensive ingredient at roughly $8.00 for a smaller bottle. I imagine maple flavored breakfast syrup would work if you don’t want to spend that much. The crescent dough is roughly $2.50 or less if on sale. 5 Pins.

Practicality: These are wonderful as a weekend breakfast or brunch treat. 5 Pins

Mary Heidrich Realtor

recommends

August 22, 2024

A+ ADMINS is a great company. Anne and Tony are so knowledgeable and tech savvy ---- I am grateful to have met them and to work with them!

Jenny Ramirez

May 18, 2024

Anne is incredibly knowledgeable, organized and efficient. Anne has been an invaluable asset to my business, and I am grateful for her hard work and dedication. I highly recommend Anne and her team to any real estate professional looking for a top-notch support specialist. She will undoubtedly contribute to your success.

Robert Ferrera

December 28, 2023

My name is Lynne Ferrera with Public Title Services and Anne was our contact for the closing and she did an amazing job! I would absolutely refer her and hope to work with her again!

Jana Fonzo

September 5, 2023

Melissa Moore

July 13, 2023

Anne was a pleasure to work with, and provided excellent service and quick and timely responses to all the information I needed on this transaction. I look forward to working with her and A+ Admins again in the future. Thanks Anne!

Donna Bryant

April 5, 2023

Anne Hernandez and her team did an amazing job for me on a beautiful mailer to a specific neighborhood last week. I’ve already received a response! I highly recommend A+ for all of your Real Estate needs!

Brenda Straub Real Estate

March 6, 2023

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Anthony (Tony) Hernandez just worked a major Miracle on my Coldwell Banker Global Luxury Website! Go-Daddy wanted to charge me $149 ($200 annually) for an SSL Certificate to make my Website secure. Who wants an unsecured Website? Right? Tony just fixed it immediately! Don't run your business without Tony and Anne Hernandez, (Excellent Transaction Coordinator), A+Admins! The Best in the Business! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️5-Star Excellence!

Laura Lane Heidrich

January 20, 2023

Coldwell Banker Realty

I cannot say enough about my fellow Realtor and transaction coordinator here at Coldwell Banker Realty in Winter Park. Anne Hernandez and her company, A+ Admins, always deliver exceptional integrity and top-notch service. My clients continue to compliment A+ Admins' professionalism and availability, which we know to be truly invaluable as Realtors. As much as we love what we do, sometimes there is not enough time to fit it all in, but since using A+ Admins, I love my job even more! Anne works with many Realtors/clients from different real estate companies in Central Florida. I highly recommend you give A+ Admins a chance to allow you more time to build future client relationships.

Bruce Corn

January 18, 2023

Awesome, Awesome, Awesome! Always on top of everything and I never have to worry about dropping the ball.

December 19, 2022

Jodie Lutz

December 8, 2022

Working with Anne and Anthony Hernandez reminded me of that great song by Barbara Streisand "Putting It Together." Laid out in front of me were the pieces to rebrand my real estate business, a good foundation and hours of preparation but who would bring it to life. I was introduced to Anthony in a chance meeting, and I knew right away that he understood my vision. Both Anne and Anthony made a tremendous contribution to execute the rebrand. I now enjoy more time supporting sellers and buyers in my ever-expanding markets. Anne and Anthony, you put it together, and that's what counts. Let's keep going! Jodie Lutz, Realtor Coldwell Banker Realty

Patricia Jean-Francois

December 1, 2022

Heather Kelley

November 2, 2022

Anne was very professional and thorough throughout the entire process.

October 15, 2022

Working with Anne and Anthony Hernandez reminded me of that great song by Barbara Streisand "." Laid out in front of me were the pieces to rebrand my real estate business, a good foundation and hours of preparation but who would bring it to life. I was introduced to Anthony in a chance meeting, and I knew right away that he understood my vision. Both Anne and Anthony made a tremendous contribution to execute the rebrand. I now enjoy more time supporting sellers and buyers in my ever-expanding markets. Anne and Anthony, you put it together, and that's what counts. Let's keep going!

Tina M Christensen, Realtor, GRI

August 19, 2022

Need some work life balance? Bring in the A+Admins team! They have been lifesavers for me so I can be doing what I need to be doing; sharing my family legacy in making a difference and being a solution partner to my customers in finding their next business space or home. Thank you!

Stephanie Valdes

April 4, 2022

They were responsive & wonderful to work with. Having a TC that can work well with you is so important in this business & they were a pleasure to work with. Knowledge & sweet.

Brian Doehrman

February 15, 2022

I wanted to share that Anne with A+ Admins is absolutely amazing to work with. The whole process really started out in such a way that I really didn’t realize how good she was until it all played out. Anne messaged me one afternoon asking when was a good time to talk knowing I had an interest in creating a logo/brand for our business. I replied now is good and she quickly called me. It started with her asking a few very detailed questions but easy to answer as she got me to really think and I liked that. Everything from our business, my fiancé who is now with me at Coldwell Banker our Dog, and how I wanted it to not focus on me personally but on what we can do for our customers. Looking back, I think we were on the phone for close to an hour of a great conversation. In the end, she sent over a few things to do with our new logo and brand and we loved it. I recommend anybody that even just wants information to call Anne as you will likely have the same experience I did.

Dawn Taylor

November 23, 2021

Anne’s abilities, experience, knowledge, and skills in Administration, Marketing, and Social Media have improved my continued success and efficiency as a Realtor in Central Florida.

Christine Elias

June 8, 2021

Anne has been my assistant for a year and a half. She manages my transactions, marketing, CRM, and so much more!

Lana Watts

October 22, 2020

Thank you so much for listening to my vision, needs, and wants. I wanted a professional to create a marketing letter for me to help me with my business and also create a brand. She did both seamlessly. Working with her was a pleasure and her final project for my business was amazing.

Thank you for all that you do and I would recommend your services to anyone in the business profession.

Author: Anne Hernandez

The Pintesting:

The Pintesting Results:

The Pintesting:

The Pintesting Results:

The Pintesting:

The Pintesting Results:

Coldwell Banker Realty

Coldwell Banker Realty

Coldwell Banker Realty

Coldwell Banker Realty

Coldwell Banker Realty

Coldwell Banker Realty