Yellow Cake & Nutella Buttercream Frosting

I know no one really wants to see cake photos, let alone a cake and frosting recipe, at the start of the new year but just wait before you click out of this page! Maybe it'll come in handy when you're craving something sweet.
There are just three words I have to say about Pinterest: I LOVE IT! There are only so many blogs and recipes I can find by myself. But now there is a place where everyone shares their finds and makes searching for things myself so much easier. See something you like, pin it for yourself, and go back to it when you're up for a challenge! Now I literally have a gazillion recipes, tutorials, outfits, and other inspirations I'd love to try. Since jumping on the Pinterest bandwagon, the next two are the first recipes I have tried and had successful results with.

I've never tried to make frosting from scratch before. But the photo on Pinterest made it look very fluffy and delectable. The plus of homemade frosting is being able to control the sweetness. Here's a link to the actual recipe if anyone wants to explore the website some more: CLICK HERE.
Nutella Buttercream Frosting
  • 2 sticks of room temperature (soft) unsalted butter
  • 2 cups of powdered or confectioner's sugar
  • 2/3 cup of Nutella
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
  • 2 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
Blend the butter and sugar until combined.
Add the Nutella in and blend.
Add the salt and vanilla extract and blend.
Add heavy whipping cream and blend.
I followed the recipe for the most part because this was my first time making frosting. I'm not sure what the difference is in adding the ingredients separately makes but I did it that way anyways just to play it safe. However for the next time, I will probably experiment with the powdered sugar levels. The only thing I did differently this time around was add a smidgen more heavy whipping cream because I thought the frosting consistency I had was just a bit too thick. In the end I had more than enough to give my cake a light layer of icing, add flowery/spiky decorations, and still had frosting to spare. I don't have any special gadgets for icing or decorating. I just use a good o' butter knife, a plastic flower icing tip, and a Ziploc bag.
The actual cake recipe I followed was pretty simple. I was contemplating whether or not to make it from scratch but remembered I pinned something rather interesting a while back. The photo description had something along the lines of "box of cake mix & Greek yogurt". Need I say more? I knew I had to try it! The recipe comes from the website Hungry Girl. I'm not too familiar with her but I've heard the Hungry Girl name here and there. I think she gives tips on healthier eating options? (Don't quote me on that.) She recommended to use a Devil's Food Cake mix but my family isn't too big on chocolate or dark looking desserts so I opted for a yellow cake mix instead. The directions are pretty simple. Just ignore the ingredients the box says you'll need.
Yellow Cake Recipe
  • 1 box of cake mix (your choice on what flavor)
  • 1 cup of Greek yogurt (unflavored)
  • 1 cup water
Mix the cake mix, yogurt, and water together until all of it is combined.
Bake according to the box instructions or until a toothpick poked into the center of the cake comes out clean.
The end result was very delicious. I used Fage Total 0% for the recipe and that's the type Hungry Girl recommended as well. I'm actually not a big fan of yogurt. Surprising surprising. Please don't judge! I just haven't gotten past the tangy flavor of it . But this cake didn't taste anything like yogurt at all. Instead, the cake itself was just very moist. I don't think I'm ever going back to using oil, eggs, and water for box cake mixes...ever!

These make pretty good and sort of healthy snacks don't you think? Of course definitely not the icing part. But if you just make little cupcakes sans the frosting, it makes for an awesome treat. If anyone plans to make this cake and icing and end up putting any leftovers into the fridge, I'd recommend microwaving your slice of cake or cupcake for a bit to soften the frosting and cake. The frosting gets much sweeter when it is cold and hardened. Plus cake just tastes much better when it's soft! Hope I didn't destroy anyone's keep fit/lose weight/eat healthy New Year's resolutions already. But I personally think this is a great alternative for those sweet-tooth cravings. Would anyone be interested in seeing how other Pinterest experimentations turn out?

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone!! Hope you all will have a great 2013! :]

Here's a mani I did a few days ago. Nothing too fancy here though because glittery nails are pretty on but it is such a pain to take off.




Gold Base: Milani 3D Holographic Nail Lacquer ~ 510-3D
Black Polish: Sally Hansen ~ Midnight in NY (a very appropriate New Year's polish don't you think?)
Excuse the bubbles! I was too liberal while applying my top coat and those showed up.

If you don't mind sharing, what are some of your resolutions?

Collective Beauty Haul

I haven't done a collective haul post in a long time! Over the past few months I've bought more clothes than anything else. But that has yet to find it's way onto my blog (maybe in the future). The only beauty products I purchased were a result of necessity and the coupons I received. I think I can definitely give myself a pat on the back for the lack of makeup and skincare hoarding I've done in the latter half of 2012.
Skin79 Smart Clear Deep Cleansing Oil
I've tried this for a couple of weeks now and I have to say I don't like this cleansing oil very much. Then again this is one of the few items that I didn't search for any reviews before purchasing so there is no one to blame but myself.

One layer
Two layers

Thank goodness CVS included these as a part of their Winter Clearance sale! I think each were only ~$1.50. Otherwise, I probably would have never even considered buying Milani polishes. The colors always looked pretty and sparkly on the display, but drugstore polishes can be pricey. (I say this meaning any polish over $5, when not on sale, for a drugstore brand is 'pricey'.) I've been using the silver and gold polish shades a lot in particular for the holidays.

Clinique All About Eyes Rich, Beauty Insider 500 Point Perk, Becca Beach Tint - Lychee
The first Sephora hauling I've done since maybe the Spring? If it wasn't for their $15 off coupon for Beauty Insiders, I wouldn't have bought as much as I did.
Beeca Beach Tint - Lychee
Lychee looks bright out of the tube but when I apply 1 layer it turns out to be very natural. Of course, it is definitely possible to get the bright pink shade as well with a second layer.
Clinique All About Eyes Rich
After using the Naruko eye cream for what seems like forever, I was so excited to try something else. I really needed something more moisturizing and this has been delivering just that!



The contents of my 500-point perk from Sephora. I have been saving up these points for years! I haven't used any of these products so I cannot say much about them yet. I'm definitely looking forward to using the Shimmer Bloc.

After seeing what KarYi picked up with her $10 Origins coupon, I'm regretting my purchase. Their line of makeup products completely slipped my mind and all I could remember was how many people raved of their exfoliator, Modern Friction. I actually have a few unopened exfoliators lying around so I didn't want to buy a full-size of it. Hopefully I'll end up liking this and I won't regret buying it as much. All I can do now is look forward to my next Origins coupon so I can pick up the Pinch Your Cheeks blushes the next time around.

Since my Josie Maran sunscreen ran out I haven't been wearing sun protection at all. I definitely don't recommend this! When I got my $5 Extrabucks from CVS and a 25% coupon in my email, I knew exactly what I wanted to try. It wasn't hard to choose from all the sunscreens La Roche-Posay offered because I prefer to use physical sunscreens (with Titanium Dioxide and/or Zinc Oxide). Now the decision of the tinted version over the untinted version was just because the untinted sunscreens at the CVS I go to were all pretty old but not yet expired. Just to play it safe I bought the tinted sunscreen since one bottle of sunscreen tends to last me a while. So far, I really like this protect!

I've wanted to try something from the Sana Hadanomy line for the longest time. For one reason or another, I never ended up purchasing anything. After not having a mist to use for the past few months, I finally got this! It's only been a week but I do like it. The only thing is the mist isn't as fine as I'd prefer. But I guess nothing is ever perfect.

What new products have you bought recently? Any recommendations you'd like share?
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)