Robin Williams + Pineapple Cake

I have to start tonight by saying how sad it is to hear of Robin Williams' passing. He was such a talent and will be missed. This is so tragic and I'm saying a prayer tonight for his friends and family.

On a lighter note, I had planned to share an amazing recipe with you all tonight.  Believe it or not, this is a ONE POINT Weight Watchers recipe that I found on Pinterest. So easy. So delicious.

Before I began cooking, I took this selfie for my sis. I love this apron she gave me from Anthropologie! Thanks girl!!

Back to the recipe, here's what you need:

1) One box of angel food cake mix

2) One 20 oz can of crushed pineapple

Mix together, pour into a sprayed pan, and bake for 30 minutes at 350.  It's so important that you spray the pan with cooking spray! Don't ask me why the cake box says not to- trust me, spray it! The cake comes out so much easier.

The baking steps are illustrated here:

The cake came out perfect and tasted delectable!!! I still can't believe it is ONE POINT!  I topped mine with fresh pineapples and some frozen peaches and mangoes that I had on hand.  Fat free whipped cream and a maraschino cherry topped this dessert off.

Since I like to overestimate my Weight Watchers points, I counted this as a TWO POINT dessert as the maraschino cherry had been stored in sweet syrup.  Whether you are on Weight Watchers or not- I hope you give this a try!! You'll love it!

Kisses and hugs- 

Madeleine 

LOVEly Weekend + 13 lbs Lost

This weekend I had the pleasure of attending an amazing wedding for my sweet cousin and her hubby. Love you both so much! Wishing you a wonderful happily ever after -- it was so great to celebrate with you and all of the family!! xo xo

In other news, as of last Friday, I have lost 13 lbs!  Portion control, drinking lots of water, and trying to make healthier choices have helped me to lose the weight.  So far, I have not followed a specific program.  However, I'm once again starting to follow Weight Watchers so that I can continue to make some progress.  #IPromise... More to follow there.  :-)

Tonight, I pinned some "low point" recipes that I am excited to try from Pinterest:





























How good does that pineapple angel food cake look?  Yes, please.  Mark my words, this recipe will be made. 

Whenever I think of pineapples, it reminds me of Maya Angelou and I just have to share her words...

Although the syrupy golden rings sat in their exotic cans on our shelves year round, we only tasted them during Christmas. Momma used the juice to make almost-black fruit cakes. Then she lined heavy soot-encrusted iron skillets with the pineapple rings for rich upside-down cakes. Bailey and I received one slice each, and I carried mine around for hours, shredding off the fruit until nothing was left except the perfume on my fingers.   

 - Maya Angelou, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings".  

It has been so many years, but this passage has stayed with me!!  Ever since I've read this, I think of it each time I eat a pineapple.  Such a simple pleasure, it gives so much perspective.

 

Sending "have a great week" wishes from Charleston, SC... Where I am pinning recipes, but also smiling, enjoying some great memories from a LOVEly and love-filled weekend.

 

Best love,

Madeleine

Embracing the Cha-Cha + CharlestonGrit

Embracing the cha-cha!  My dear friend Katie shared this picture this week and, with her permission, I had to re-post!  The sign says, "Optimist: Someone who figures that taking a step backward after taking a step forward is not a disaster, it's more like a Cha-Cha". Katie - I love this and I love you!  You are all in every thought and prayer. This little slogan is such a great reminder for all of us! And a special thank you to those who might be reading this that have helped me with my own cha-cha dancing. You are amazing and I love you!!

Oh, before I forget!  I have exciting news to share.  I sent a writing sample and was accepted as a guest blogger on CharlestonGrit.com.  I can't wait to tell you more - thank you, CharlestonGrit.com for this great opportunity!  As I finish this post, the last load of laundry is spinning (love falling asleep to that sound).... Xs & Os and Best Loves -

 

Madeleine

Burlap Wreath DIY + Fresh Pasta

I hope everyone had a great weekend! In addition to enjoying great friends and family, this weekend was truly "craftastic". Check out this DIY inspired by Lucky in Love designs.

This wreath is for my Grandma and there will likely be another one made for my parents. Floral pins held this wreath together and a hot glue gun was used for adding the letters and finishing touches.

This picture is from a tree straight out of a Harper Lee classic... As my parents noted, it's just waiting for Boo Radley to leave some treats!

On a Sunday morning, Summerville can look a lot like Europe. So beautiful!

Finishing this post with a plug for Rio Bertolini's pasta! I've been excited to try their pasta and boy is it good.

The spinach and tomato basil pasta were just $1 per serving. They freeze very well and taste so delicious, the servings are pre-portioned which made my pasta feast a guilt-free pleasure!  Thank you, Rio Bertolini's!

Wishing everyone a great start to the week (and a happy belated birthday to a few very special loves that celebrated this weekend) - xoxoxo

Best love,

Madeleine

Sautéed Peaches + Blueberry Pancakes

Happy Friday! This morning I woke up with the sun to cook breakfast for some wonderful people.  Using a recipe from my Dad, I sautéed the peaches I had bought from the farmers market into a super delicious breakfast treat.

This was my first time making homemade whipped cream- so fun and so easy. I would recommend adding sugar to the whipped cream mixture as it peaks. This took it to a new level!

Blueberry pancakes are the main event. These were made using Bisquick Shake and Pour.  Rather than pouring, I used a ice cream scoop so that the pancakes would pour in equal measure.

Last but not least, there is some fried-up bacon. Some of the bacon made it's way into the pancakes:-). I made a few of these - but they did not look as appealing as the rest of this breakfast!

I wanted to finish with a thank you for your kind words on Facebook about the girls that code post! That meant so much! X's and O's from the SC.

Best love- Madeleine

Girls Who Code + Closing the Gender Gap

I'm using this space tonight to talk about a topic that's important - closing the gender gap in technology.  When I was in college, women were five times less likely to study technology.  Someday, I hope they are five times more likely. 

My blog focuses primarily on lifestyle and IT has been a huge part of mine. Maybe, someday, a girl will find this page via a Google search, Bing, or something that hasn't even been invented yet. I hope she learns that she can have an awesome cat, great makeup, bake a killer batch of chocolate chip cookies, and have an enjoyable career in software development.

I take pride in the fact that I've studied seven development languages.  It's fun to remember those early days of HTML "de-coding".  Logging into Prodigy, doing a view source, and then teaching myself how to tag HTML.  My parents get all the credit in the world for this passion and early introduction to technology.

I've been so blessed to work for companies that have taken me (literally) all around the world and then back home again!  I love this career and wouldn't change it.  It's sad to think of technology careers as "the road less traveled" and hopefully we can make a difference.  Girls Who Code is an organization with a mission to close the gender gap in technology and engineering sectors.  I love that and I hope to become involved in this organization, or one like it. 

Just a quick post on this- but if there's interest- I'll blog more about it soon! <b> xoxo </b>

Madeleine

Quick Chocolate Cheesecake

Just a quick post (mostly pictures!) of an amazing chocolate cheesecake that I made for my parents last night. Made mainly with ingredients most have in their kitchens already, this dessert was super easy AND super delicious!  Best combination ever :-) 

Shout out to my Grandma who introduced me to Taste of Home! Give this recipe a try- enjoy every bite of this cheesecake and every bite of this week!

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/chocolate-cheesecake-pie

Xxoo Best Love,

Madeleine